Kyoni Animation Company, during the lunch break.
"Knock knock~!" Kamiyā Yuu tapped on the wooden door of the key animation department's private office. After waiting for a while, he found it strange that there was no response at all.
Not far away, Morishita Aoi, who was focused on drawing key animation, noticed the situation. She stretched lazily, stood up, and walked over, softly explaining, "Kamiyā-kun, Etsuki is currently in a meeting with the company's management on the first floor in the president's office. If it's about work, you can report it to me first."
Kamiyā Yuu turned back and smiled. "It's not exactly official business. If all the higher-ups are in a meeting, then Mr. Fujiwara should also be in the president's office, right?"
"If nothing unexpected happened, he should be. This was an emergency meeting, so I'm not sure how long it'll last," Morishita Aoi replied after a moment's thought, seeing that Kamiyā Yuu didn't intend to give up.
"Thanks, Morishita-senpai." Kamiyā Yuu waved his hand and left the key animation department.
The notification from "Fakebook" that morning about the weekend meeting had indeed caught him off guard. Originally, he planned to use Sunday to ask Fujiwara Tora, the production manager, to help connect him with a professional music studio. Since the discussion was now set for the weekend, he needed to contact a music studio beforehand and determine the cost of the two tracks.
After buying a bottle of green tea from the company's vending machine, Kamiyā Yuu went to the first floor of Kyoni Animation. While eating a bento he had bought from a convenience store, he kept an eye on the president's office. Japanese bento meals tasted good, but more importantly, they were fresh. Due to regulations in Japan, most bento sold in supermarkets are made the same day. Near evening, their prices would drop by half to prevent leftovers, and any unsold items overnight would usually be discarded as waste. He vaguely recalled a rather obscure animation from his previous world called 'Ben-To'—the only thing he remembered about it was the music being quite hype, while the plot was mostly nonsense.
Halfway through his meal, he saw people gradually coming out of the president's office. He quickly finished his bento and hurried over.
Most of those exiting were members of Kyoni Animation's management. Their expressions were uniformly gloomy. Some female staff members were even quietly sobbing. Among the crowd, he quickly spotted Uehara Etsuki. Dressed in a plain white kimono, she stood out starkly from the others. Her posture remained elegant and composed. Although her expression wasn't as bleak as those around her, her brows were faintly furrowed.
"Uehara-senpai, what happened?" Kamiyā Yuu approached her, glancing at the surrounding crowd before asking in a low voice.
The two moved to a quieter corner on the first floor. Uehara Etsuki shook her head and didn't answer. Instead, she calmly asked, "Kamiyā-kun, what is it you need?"
Understanding her intent, Kamiyā Yuu didn't press further. "Ah, this morning, 'Fakebook' notified me that my crowdfunding project passed review."
Uehara Etsuki's expression softened slightly, and she smiled gently. "Is that so? Congratulations, Kamiyā-kun."
"Besides telling you, I was actually hoping to find Mr. Fujiwara. I need to contact a music studio as soon as possible to determine the crowdfunding budget," Kamiyā Yuu said, scratching the back of his head a little awkwardly.
"Is it urgent?" Uehara Etsuki asked, her tone carrying a hint of hesitation.
Seeing her reaction, Kamiyā Yuu knew it must be related to the emergency meeting earlier. After a brief pause, he answered honestly, "If possible, it would be best to contact them today."
Uehara Etsuki sighed softly. Looking at his face, she reached out and brushed away a grain of rice he had left behind in his haste to finish eating.
"It's not a good look to meet people like this. Mr. Fujiwara should still be in the president's office, though he may be a bit emotional right now. Since you helped him last time, it shouldn't be a problem."
With that, she walked past him and slowly headed up the stairs.
"Uehara-senpai, what exactly happened?" Kamiyā Yuu couldn't help but ask again as he watched her ascend.
"You'll understand once you see Mr. Fujiwara."
...
As expected, Kamiyā Yuu found Fujiwara Tora in the meeting room of the president's office. The burly man looked just like he had a month ago when he first came to the key animation department—disheveled and defeated. No, even worse. Back then, there had still been a glimmer of light in his eyes. Now, there was only gloom and dejection.
"Knock knock." Kamiyā Yuu tapped on the already open glass door and greeted softly, "Mr. Fujiwara?"
Slumped in his office chair, Fujiwara Tora turned around weakly and forced a smile. "Kamiyā… here on business with the production department?" After a moment, he looked around and let out a hollow laugh. "Ah… right, this is the president's office."
"Did something happen? Uehara-sensei said you would tell me," Kamiyā Yuu asked, carefully choosing his words.
The atmosphere in the meeting room was heavy. After a long silence, Fujiwara Tora closed his eyes and spoke slowly.
"This news wasn't supposed to be shared with you all, since it would affect your work. The president called this emergency meeting to announce something—'Mr. Onigiri Man' will be the company's final animation. Kamiyā… do you understand what that means?"
Kamiyā Yuu froze. A single word surfaced in his mind—bankruptcy.
Fujiwara Tora shook his head bitterly and laughed at himself. "It was expected. The company has been operating at a loss for three years now. We've only lasted this long because the president used his own savings to keep things afloat. Now it's clear there's no way out. There's no point dragging this on any longer."
"This news will probably be officially announced at the celebration banquet after episode fourteen of 'Mr. Onigiri Man' airs."
Kamiyā Yuu nodded in realization. At this moment, he actually felt awkward bringing up his original purpose. No wonder Uehara Etsuki had hesitated earlier—under these circumstances, asking Fujiwara Tora for help was indeed inappropriate.
Noticing his hesitation, Fujiwara Tora forced a hearty smile and tried to reassure him. "Don't worry. Key animators like you will always find work. In fact, talented ones like you are in high demand in the industry."
Kamiyā Yuu couldn't help but laugh bitterly—Fujiwara had clearly misunderstood his expression.
"If you're still worried, I can act as an intermediary and introduce you to a few well-known companies," Fujiwara Tora said, standing up and thumping his chest confidently. His imposing build did make it somewhat convincing.
Amused, Kamiyā Yuu shook his head and got straight to the point. "Actually, I came to ask you for help with something else."
"Oh? Go ahead. There's not much time left for the company anyway. If there's anything I can help with, I will," Fujiwara Tora replied, his mood lifting slightly. For him, being able to help Kamiyā Yuu at a time like this was something worth feeling good about.