After Fujikawa Shunpei finished speaking, silence fell in the air. The clinking of coffee cups and the distant murmur of other patrons seemed to fade into white noise. Perhaps knowing that the topic he brought up was a bit sudden for Shiratori Seiya, he took a sip of water, then looked at the young man in front of him, waiting for a reply.
Shiratori Seiya's gaze lowered slightly as if he was lost in thought. His fingers traced the rim of his coffee cup, a slow, measured motion that betrayed nothing of the calculations running through his mind. After a moment, he met Fujikawa Shunpei's eyes, touched his earlobe with his finger, and asked with a smile:
"Mr. Fujikawa wants to start a company?"
"No, no." Hearing him say that, Fujikawa Shunpei quickly waved his hand, pulled his chair forward, and said, "To be precise, it's not that I want to start a company; it's that my wife has some spare money and recently wants something to do."
"Oh." Shiratori Seiya nodded thoughtfully, then pressed further, "An entertainment company?"
"Mm." As if a sensitive area had been touched, Fujikawa Shunpei's eyes lowered slightly, and he chuckled as he explained, "After all, my wife is also doing this for the first time and has no experience in this area. She probably thought I might be able to help, so she decided to develop in this direction…"
"I see." Shiratori Seiya nodded, a look of 'I understand' on his face, as if he comprehended Fujikawa Shunpei's intentions. However, in his heart, he didn't believe a single word. Fujikawa Shunpei was very dishonest. He made it sound good, but in reality, he himself wanted to start a company.
Shiratori Seiya guessed that the reason he brought up his wife was definitely because his contract with the TV station had provisions in this regard. As a producer, holding such a position, it was clear without much thought that he must have a lot of resources from the TV station at his disposal, not to mention the accumulated connections and actor resources.
It was precisely to prevent someone of his status from opening an entertainment company, using his position at the TV station to make money, and funneling resources to his own company, that the TV station would make provisions in this area when signing a contract with him. His situation was a loophole in the contract—a convenient fiction to circumvent the rules.
Before the conversation even fully began, Fujikawa Shunpei felt a sense of pressure. Shiratori Seiya's two questions seemed light and innocent, as if he hadn't asked anything significant, but they were veiled criticisms, hitting crucial points everywhere. Unconsciously, the power of the conversation seemed to have already fallen into Shiratori Seiya's hands. The air between them stagnated for another breath, thick with unspoken calculations.
Shiratori Seiya didn't let the conversation drop, and spoke first again: "Starting a company, to be honest, I'm a bit surprised. But before that, may I ask, Mr. Fujikawa, why did you consider me?"
He paused, then asked again, "With your status, I imagine a large number of people would want to collaborate with you just by beckoning, wouldn't they?"
Seeing the topic shift to him, Fujikawa Shunpei straightened up, looked into Shiratori Seiya's eyes, and said, "Talent." He said with extreme seriousness, "In my many years in the industry, I've met many famous screenwriters, read countless scripts, and collaborated with these renowned and talented authors… I've discovered the same qualities in you, Shiratori-kun. Shiratori-kun, you started writing songs in high school, didn't you? Hōjō Shione was practically brought up by your own hands. So, it's no exaggeration to say that your talent and potential are no less than theirs…"
Fujikawa Shunpei deliberately emphasized the word 'potential,' straightened up, clasped his hands together, rested his elbows on the glass table, and then changed the subject: "However, although Shiratori-kun, your potential is limitless, time waits for no one. It's important to become famous early. The plate for the cake is only so big. If others take a piece first, it'll be hard for you to grab one later. For example, the script you're writing now, Shiratori-kun, although the story is mature and very interesting, you should know that it doesn't inherently have the potential to be a massive hit."
"To put it more clearly, after this drama is filmed, released, and concluded, Shiratori-kun, you'll at most earn a little over a million yen. Compared to your creative speed, both the speed of monetization and achieving fame are too slow…"
"Gentlemen, your coffee." The waiter carrying the coffee suddenly arrived, interrupting Fujikawa Shunpei's words. He opened his mouth, his brows furrowed, clearly annoyed by the interruption.
Shiratori Seiya took a sip of his coffee without speaking, staring at the latte art in the cup, wondering what other PUA tactics he would come up with next. The bitterness of the coffee matched the taste of the conversation—sharp, complex, leaving an aftertaste of something he couldn't quite name.
Seeing Shiratori Seiya silent, Fujikawa Shunpei put down his coffee cup and advised again, "Shiratori-kun, although you are still young, you have experience as a manager, so you should understand the essence of this world, shouldn't you? Money and power are the most important things in this era, and from a certain perspective, money can make you live more comfortably than power. With money, you will have everything you desire. This era is just right; seizing opportunities is more important than anything else…"
Hearing him say this, Shiratori Seiya's heart stirred. It had to be said that Fujikawa Shunpei indeed possessed a certain speaking ability; at least, he hit a nerve in his heart. The desire for money was ignited in his chest, a familiar hunger that he'd been trying to suppress. Yet Shiratori Seiya maintained his composure, looking calmly at Fujikawa Shunpei and asking, "So, Mr. Fujikawa wants me to be your company's exclusive screenwriter?"
"No, not just a screenwriter. Although I don't know why Shiratori-kun suddenly decided to stop writing songs, I would like to ask you to consider it further. I… my wife wants to focus the company's initial business primarily on music and film…" Fujikawa Shunpei generally explained the company's development and initial operational situation.
Shiratori Seiya felt a little disappointed after listening. This, in essence, was still following the path of other entertainment companies, with no innovation at all. Just as he himself had said, others had already marked out their territory on the cake plate. Trying to snatch a piece now would be too difficult. To make a name for oneself, one either needed groundbreaking ideas or sufficiently high-quality works and a hidden team of artists. Leaving aside the hidden artists for now, as for works, could he only rely on himself? Then Fujikawa Shunpei truly believed in him too much.
Shiratori Seiya distinctly felt something was off and asked about the company's structure and his own proposed role. Fujikawa Shunpei's proposal was that his wife would be the director, meaning the legal representative of the company. Shiratori Seiya could invest, and of course, there were other investors as well. The structure was vague, the promises were grand, but the concrete details were conspicuously absent.
Shiratori Seiya listened respectfully, and finally casually said, 'This matter is too important and a bit sudden; I plan to go back and think it over carefully,' before leaving.
However, as soon as he parted ways with Fujikawa Shunpei, Shiratori Seiya immediately put the matter out of his mind.
There were too many problems with Fujikawa Shunpei starting a company. Although he made many promises, saying that once the company was up and running, resources would be prioritized for his works. But his vigilance and his opinion of such an unoriginal development direction left Shiratori Seiya with no desire to join. Moreover, Fujikawa Shunpei probably considered him a naive freshman who hadn't entered society yet, thinking he would be easy to control.
However… even though he had already condemned this matter in his heart, some of what Fujikawa Shunpei said was indeed true. How much money could one earn from writing scripts and songs?
Time waits for no one; one should ride the tide and forge ahead.