I really just want to grind for entries related to crossover anime/manga.

Akane Kurokawa also started eating, her heart filled with love as she looked at her lover.

However, besides love, there is actually a deeper reason why she brought this up today.

That was... the pressure brought by Mai Sakurajima.

The other party holds a prestigious position in the entertainment industry, not only for her remarkable achievements in her career, but more importantly, for the undisguised special attention she shows towards Genkawa Yu.

Akane Kurokawa wasn't stupid; he naturally knew that Mai Sakurajima and his lover, Qun·Ling Er Er Yi ⊙ Ba Wa, had some special relationship.

This matter was like a delicate thorn, always secretly embedded in her heart, bringing a pang of pain from time to time.

She didn't want to be a "little girlfriend" forever, gently protected under Yuan Chuan You's wings. Instead, she longed to grow, to transform, and to achieve a career and personal brilliance commensurate with Yuan Chuan You's current and future accomplishments through her own efforts.

Only in this way could she stand by his side with more confidence.

Three days later, at a professional photography studio in Tokyo.

Preparations for the film "Shining Love" are proceeding smoothly.

Today's main task is to shoot costume photos of the main actors and some visual materials for pre-release promotion.

The studio was bustling with people, yet orderly and efficient. Set designers were adjusting the final lighting reflectors, while lighting technicians were checking parameters on a scaffold. The entire space was filled with a restless atmosphere of anticipation as the creative process was about to begin.

Accompanied by Megumi Kato, Yu Genkawa arrived at the studio on time and then went to a private dressing room with his name on the door.

Pushing open the door, there were already three people standing inside. This was the result of the reorganization of [Star Engine], and the three were a dedicated stylist team serving Yuan Chuan You.

They are all experienced professionals who have worked in the industry for many years and were attracted to join Star Engine by its generous compensation and the company's future development potential.

Good morning, Genkawa-san.

The team leader among the three was named Sato Kaede, a makeup artist in her thirties. She greeted them first with a smile.

Ueno Ai, standing to the side, appeared younger and more lively, her hands moving constantly as she skillfully laid out various cosmetics and brushes in an orderly fashion.

Meanwhile, costume designer Yuko Suzuki was standing next to the clothes rack, holding a steam iron, carefully tidying up the dark blue stand-up collar school uniform that she would be wearing later.

After Kato Megumi entered the lounge, she led Genkawa Yu to sit down at the dressing table and then handed him a script.

"Mr. Genkawa, Director Mizuki just sent over the final version of the script. He said if you have time, you can take a look at it again while you're getting your makeup done."

Genkawa Yu accepted the script, which was noticeably thicker, and thanked him.

He sat down in front of the bright makeup mirror and opened the script, which had been meticulously polished once again.

Since he offered those constructive suggestions at the last meeting, the scriptwriting team, under the personal supervision of the original author Io Sakisaka, has devoted a great deal of time and energy to revising and enriching the script.

Sure enough, the final version presented to him was richer and more detailed, with clearer and more reasonable motivations and growth arcs for each character, and the texture of the story appeared more realistic.

"Hmm... [Takumi Ando]? Oh, he's the second male lead."

Yuu Genkawa noticed that the male classmate, Takumi Ando, ​​who originally only had a crush on the female protagonist, Ninako Kinoshita, has now been given a complete and touching psychological growth trajectory.

The script meticulously depicts his journey from initially observing cautiously and silently to keenly noticing that Ninako's gaze remained fixed on the male protagonist, Ren.

So this kind-hearted boy chose to offer his blessings as a friend, and when the relationship between the male and female protagonists was at a stalemate, he took the initiative to prompt [Lotus] to face and confront her own heart.

The successful development of this character not only greatly enhanced the emotional depth of the story, but also cleverly served as a catalyst to drive the main romance forward, avoiding the abruptness and idealism that might occur in the romance between the male and female protagonists, allowing the two to naturally come together in the end.

In this new script, not only Takumi Ando, ​​but also other supporting characters have more lifelike and realistic interactions, making the school world constructed by the story more three-dimensional.

"The script has been optimized very successfully, even better than I expected."

Genkawa Yu closed the script and said to Kato Megumi beside him, his tone filled with genuine appreciation.

Indeed, professional tasks should be handled by professionals. When laymen interfere with experts, they naturally cannot write good scripts.

At this point, the makeup process officially began.

Genkawa Yu obediently closed his eyes, relaxed his body, and felt the soft and delicate makeup brush gently sweep across his cheeks like a spring breeze.

The theme of this movie is pure campus romance, and he needs to wear the school uniform that symbolizes the years of youth.

This made him vaguely recall his debut role in "49". Now, a year later, he is returning to the role of a high school student. His mindset, experience and understanding of acting are completely different from before.

"Genkawa-san's skin is really amazing, you can hardly see any flaws."

As Ai Ueno gently spread the light and breathable foundation on him with her fingertips, she couldn't help but whisper her praise, her face beaming with the smile of a devoted fan.

"Her face is so small, and the lines of her brow bone and nose bridge are especially perfect. She only needs very slight makeup to look outstanding on camera."

Sato Kaede, on the other hand, focused more on controlling the overall effect and providing artistic guidance. She stood a little further back, carefully observing Genkawa Yu's facial contours and the texture of his skin under the light.

"The core goal of this overall makeup look is to achieve a sense of freshness and youthfulness. All traces of makeup must be minimized, and the focus is on completely eliminating any makeup that might give off a mature or overly elaborate feel."

"The main thing is to create that kind of..."

She envisioned a scene in her mind, and a look of longing appeared on her young face.

"That kind of feeling... after finishing a class, quietly walking down the school corridor with his textbook, he can immediately attract the attention of all the girls, as if he has stepped out of a shoujo manga and become a school prince."

Genkawa Yuu raised her head slightly to make it easier for them to operate.

The two makeup artists clearly worked together seamlessly, their movements fluid and efficient, yet without causing any discomfort.

Kato Megumi stood a little further away, quietly watching Genkawa Yu in the mirror. Under the exquisite skills of the two makeup artists, the composure between youth and maturity that he usually possessed was gradually fading away. The originally slightly clear contours between his eyebrows were cleverly softened by the makeup, and his eyes appeared even clearer and brighter with the perfect eye makeup.

His entire face was enveloped in a clean and pure, delicate beauty, as if he had truly returned to the age of seventeen or eighteen, with an innocent purity and a hint of the confidence unique to top students.

About an hour later, the makeup process was successfully completed. Genkawa Yu stood up and, with the professional and efficient assistance of costume designer Suzuki Yuko, changed into the impeccably ironed school uniform.

When he stood in front of that huge floor-length mirror again, even he himself was momentarily dazed and lost in thought.

The boy reflected in the mirror was tall and handsome, with clear and bright eyes. He exuded a perfect balance of youthful innocence and a gentle, refreshing charm.

She is a spitting image of Ichinose Ren, who stepped right out of the original manga by Sakisaka Io.

"Absolutely perfect! The results exceeded expectations!"

Sato Kaede crossed his arms and scrutinized his work with a rigorous professional eye, finally revealing a satisfied smile.

“Mr. Genkawa, you look no different from a real high school student right now, and you even have more of that ideal sense of youth than many real high school students.”

"Yeah yeah!"

Ueno Ai clapped her hands excitedly, her eyes sparkling, "If there were a boy like you in my high school, I would definitely pursue him!"

"Thank you."

Genkawa Yu looked in the mirror, made final adjustments to the tightness of his tie and the top button of his shirt, and was genuinely satisfied with the final result.

"Let's go, Kato, let's go take our costume photos."

"Yes."

The girl immediately followed in his footsteps.

Meanwhile, in another somewhat old-fashioned photography studio in Tokyo.

The atmosphere here is completely different from the well-funded atmosphere of the "Sparkling Love" crew; it leans more towards the coldness and slight haste of a realistic subject.

Asakura Toru was sitting in a makeshift rest area, on an ordinary folding chair, her head down, intently studying the script in her hands, the pages of which were already curled up.

She played a minor supporting role in the realistic drama series called "The Dawn Is Coming".

This hard-won opportunity was earned through her perseverance, tireless auditioning time and time again, and her gradually improving acting skills.

Her friend, Higuchi Enka, was sitting quietly on a plastic stool next to her.

Higuchi Enka didn't have work today; she came to keep Asakura Toru company and support him.

Looking at her friend's focused profile, immersing herself in the world of the script and occasionally furrowing her brows slightly, she felt a complex and indescribable emotion welling up inside her.

Their idol group, Nokuchiru, is currently enjoying a golden age of steady growth thanks to its unique musical style and powerful stage presence.

If this trend continues, holding a concert for 10,000 people at the Tokyo Dome, the ultimate dream of all Japanese idol groups, doesn't seem like an unattainable dream.

As an indispensable core member of the group, Toru Asakura should have devoted most of his energy and time to consolidating his idol career.

But at some point, Higuchi Madoka noticed that the other person had started to devote a lot of personal time to acting lessons.

After a while, Asakura Toru finally looked up from the short script, rubbed his eyes which were a little sore and swollen from focusing for so long, and happened to catch a glimpse of his friend looking intently at that familiar book.

She smiled slightly and said in a relaxed, nonchalant tone.

"Enka, it seems you really love Genkawa-kun's 'The Wind Rises,' you're so engrossed in it. If I happen to run into him on any film set next time, I can try to get you an autographed copy."

Upon hearing this, Higuchi Enka raised her clear and calm eyes, shifting her gaze from the pages of the book to Asakura Toru's smiling face.

Then, she calmly shook her head, gently closed the book, and hugged it to her chest, her tone still revealing no emotion.

"No need to trouble yourself. If I really want Mr. Genkawa's autograph, I will go to him and ask for it myself."

She paused, seemingly changing the subject casually, but her gaze subtly sharpened as she fixed her gaze on Asakura Toru's face.

"Speaking of which, at the end of last month, there was a large-scale summer fireworks festival by the Sumida River. You mentioned Mr. Genkawa before, did he end up going?"

Upon hearing this unexpected question, Asakura Toru's nonchalant smile froze slightly. She lowered her head and subconsciously twirled the rough edges of the script with her fingertips.

"No... Genkawa-kun sent a message later, saying that he had a very important work arrangement that conflicted with his schedule..."

That was something they had casually agreed to when they went to the movies together last time, saying that if they had time, they might go see a movie together.

Asakura Toru was really looking forward to this event, and even dragged MEM Chu along to buy a beautiful yukata suitable for the summer night sky. In the end, what he received was an apologetic message from him.

Higuchi Madoka quietly watched her friend's mood plummet, and the long-standing, vague guess in her mind gradually became clearer.

She wasn't the type to beat around the bush, but when it came to Tou, her most cherished friend, the girl chose a more tactful way of expressing herself.

"Toru, tell me, you've been going to acting classes like crazy lately... are you really determined to 'catch up' with him?"

She didn't explicitly say who the person she was "following" was, nor did she reveal the longing that might have already taken root in her heart.

But the deep understanding that had developed between them over the years allowed Asakura Toru to instantly grasp the unspoken meaning behind Enka's words.

"Well..."

Asakura Toru fell into a brief silence, his long eyelashes drooping and casting a small fan-shaped shadow under his eyelids.

But after a few seconds, a relaxed smile returned to her pretty face. She wasn't someone who cared about what others thought; once she made up her mind, she would strive to achieve it.

"Yes! This is my own choice, the path I want to take. No matter how difficult this path is, or how many setbacks and doubts I encounter, I will definitely...keep going."

She wanted to chase after that person's dazzling silhouette, to keep getting closer; this was genuine emotion.