"Since you're a friend of Aoi's, take a seat and have a drink," the woman behind the bar said to Yuta.
"Thanks."
Yuta sat down next to Aoi and ordered a drink on the bartender's recommendation.
Aoi drank in silence, not saying a word.
The woman behind the bar, on the other hand, was chatty. While mixing Yuta's drink, she said, "I'm Seira. Aoi's friend and classmate from high school. So what's the deal between you and Aoi, Shido?"
"My relationship with Miss Fuji? I guess we're friends and work partners," Yuta said.
"That's it?"
"Yeah."
"Got a girlfriend, Shido?"
"No."
"Aoi doesn't have a boyfriend either, you know. She's actually never dated anyone in her entire life."
"Really?"
Yuta was a little surprised.
Seira opened her mouth like she wanted to keep going, but that was when Aoi finally snapped. "You two do realize I'm sitting right here?"
Seira immediately shut up. She set the finished drink down in front of Yuta.
Yuta took a sip, then turned to Aoi. "Miss Fuji, what's the story with this Ryouga Fuji?"
Aoi kept her head down and didn't answer.
Seira couldn't help herself though. "Ryouga is Aoi's younger brother. How should I put this? The Fuji family has a really old-fashioned, sexist mindset. Even though Aoi is Chairman Fuji's daughter, she has no inheritance rights in the family. She's even been expected to..."
Before she could finish, Aoi lifted her head.
One look from Aoi and Seira zipped her lips.
Yuta hadn't expected the Fuji family situation to be like this. No wonder Aoi had struggled to deal with even a department head.
No wonder Akira Fuji had been backing the former investment department chief against his own daughter.
Just then, Aoi took a long swig of her drink and spoke up. "I was actually wondering why my father so easily agreed to let me transfer Issei Kagetsu out. Turns out this was his plan all along."
"What plan?" Yuta asked immediately.
"My little brother just came back from studying abroad a couple of months ago. He has no credentials and no experience, so it would look bad putting him directly into a senior position at headquarters."
She continued. "Having him come to Arcane as the head of the investment department solves that problem. As long as he invests in Clannad season two, which is practically guaranteed to turn a profit, he can use that success to become Arcane's president. Then after a couple years in that role to build his resume, he gets promoted to the executive level at headquarters."
"What about you, Miss Fuji?" Yuta frowned.
"Me?"
Aoi let out a bitter laugh. "Once he becomes Arcane's president, there's no place for me anymore. This whole thing was designed to push me out from the start. If they just wanted to pad his resume, there are plenty of other places they could have sent him. The only reason to put him at Arcane is to get rid of me."
Yuta was starting to see the picture. It was a scheme that killed two birds with one stone.
Besides, Aoi had mentioned before that it didn't matter who headquarters sent as the new investment department head, because she had already brought the department under her control. But sending Ryouga changed everything.
While outsiders might not know much about the Fuji family's internal dynamics, plenty of people inside Arcane probably did. It was entirely possible that the moment Ryouga showed up, half the company had already switched allegiances.
Being targeted like that, anyone in Aoi's position would be feeling miserable.
One thing confused him though.
If they were going to undermine her at every turn, why had they let her become Arcane's president in the first place? Had she traded something for the position? Maybe Akira Fuji had never actually wanted her as president at all.
"Shido."
Aoi suddenly spoke again. "Don't worry about me anymore. Just go back, finish your proposal, and take it to my brother for funding. He doesn't watch anime, but he has decent investment instincts. He won't give you a hard time."
Hearing that, Yuta was immediately annoyed. "Miss Fuji, what kind of person do you think I am? Just last night I said when it comes to investment, you're the only one for me."
"Were you serious?"
"Of course I was."
"Are you stupid? Whether I invest or my brother invests, it makes zero difference to you. If anything, refusing to work with my brother might put Starfall in the crosshairs too. What possible reason would you have for doing this?"
"I..."
Yuta was momentarily at a loss for words.
He looked at Aoi's profile, at the defiance and loneliness written across her face, and something nameless surged up inside him. Before he could stop himself, the words came pouring out. "I do have a reason!"
Aoi froze for a second and turned to look at him.
Yuta kept going.
"Sure, it wouldn't make much difference to Starfall if the investor changed to Ryouga. But…"
"When I first brought my project proposal to Arcane looking for funding, Lumen's Kaito laughed in my face and said Starfall was in over its head. You're the one who stood up for me that day. And you invested in our anime."
"Later, when I had that falling out with Genma Wasabi and kicked him off the production team, and it escalated to you, you chose to back me again."
"When I said I wanted to make Clannad season two, the internet was full of people saying it was a bad idea. You still chose to support me."
"Without your support, maybe I still could have made Clannad happen. But the difficulty would have been on a completely different level."
"Now you're the one in trouble, and if I only thought about what was best for me, I wouldn't deserve to call myself a human being."
He had gotten a little emotional. By the time he finished, his breathing was heavier than usual.
Aoi clearly hadn't expected him to say all that. A complicated expression flickered across her face, and she quickly turned away, rotating a full ninety degrees so her back was to him.
"You really are an idiot," she said quietly, her voice catching ever so slightly.
Yuta took a deep breath. "Miss Fuji, your family may not be behind you, and I can't tell you that doesn't matter. But I want you to remember this: I will be your most unwavering supporter."
Aoi's shoulders trembled faintly, and she let out a soft "Mm."
Yuta didn't say anything more. He just watched her back in silence.
After a long while, Aoi pulled out a tissue, wiped her face, and turned back to the bar. "We can talk about everything else later. For now, just drink with me."
"Sure."
Yuta agreed without hesitation.
But he quickly noticed that at some point, Seira had vanished without a trace. All she'd left behind was a key and a handwritten note.
"Suddenly I remembered I have something to take care of. Help yourselves to whatever you want to drink. I'll put it on Aoi's tab. Lock up when you leave and give the key to Aoi."
She had slipped out without making a sound. Not even a footstep.
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