Nurse outfits, huh? Gotta admit, they're pretty eye-catching. Tetsu Fuyukawa was so fired up watching the morning news that he could barely sit still. But…
Around 10 a.m., Sayako dragged him out the door.
No way around it—it was because of Himawari Izumi.
Now that she'd turned 18, her relatives could no longer claim subsidies, so at 9 a.m., they called and told her to pack her bags and get out. Harsh, but not exactly rare in Japan.
It's like how Japanese women are often portrayed as super liberated in colorful anime or movies, but in reality, most are pretty conservative. Anime and J-dramas love to emphasize the bonds between people, but real-life Japan? Not always so warm and fuzzy, even within families. Take kami-machi shoujo (literally "girls awaiting divine salvation")—it sounds poetic, but it's just a term for homeless girls kicked out of their homes, often before they even finish high school, simply because their families don't want to bear their expenses anymore.
And it's not just girls. Plenty of boys face the same fate. In Tokyo's Shinjuku, there's an area called Toyoko where tons of these teens gather. It's even made headlines in the social issues section. But the really brutal part? The news just urges families to "get along" and warns people to steer clear of Toyoko because it's "unsafe."
Of course, Himawari wasn't about to go live in some Toyoko underpass. Still, she needed help moving her stuff. So, Tetsu ended up playing chauffeur.
He half-expected a classic "rude relatives look down on the hero, hero steps up and slaps them with success" moment, but he was let down. He didn't even see Himawari's relatives. When his black Volkswagen pulled up to the rundown apartment building, her belongings were already strewn haphazardly on the roadside. A pink bunny plushie, in particular, looked like it had been run over, covered in grime.
Himawari, though, seemed used to this kind of treatment. With help from Sayako and Tetsu, she loaded her things into the trunk, double-checking that nothing was missing. Through the rearview mirror, she caught Tetsu's eye as he leaned against the car window, smoking with a grim expression as he stared at the apartment building. Her clear, slightly aggrieved eyes flickered with a hint of happiness. But it vanished quickly, and she leaned forward in the car seat, grinning. "Let's go, old man. Time to head home!"
---
Having another person in the house wasn't a big deal. Their two-story home with a yard had plenty of space.
Tetsu had planned to clear out the first-floor storage room for Himawari, but who would've guessed she'd charge upstairs with her bags the moment they got home, claiming the room across from his and Sayako's bedroom, right next to the study?
He didn't really care where she stayed, but the issue was that Himawari was a musician. Her playing might disrupt his work. After some pitiful pleading from a Himawari in pink pajamas, promising "I swear I won't play instruments upstairs!" he let it slide.
"Hmph, he acts all cold, but he's a total softie," Himawari said with a sly smile as she watched Tetsu scratch his head in exasperation and head downstairs. Sayako, who was busy making the bed, stood up and playfully poked Himawari's forehead. "You haven't seen him at work, all serious and intimidating. I'm telling you, the new girls at the company are too scared to even say hi to him."
"No way it's that bad. You're just messing with me, Yako-chan!" Himawari pouted, unconvinced, having never seen Tetsu's tougher side. Hugging her pink bunny plushie, she skipped off to organize her bookshelf while Sayako just shook her head with a wry smile and went back to tidying the room.
---
A lively 18-year-old girl in the house didn't throw off Tetsu's rhythm much. Truth be told, he didn't have time to pay much attention to Himawari's antics lately.
The main reason? After getting past the initial hurdles, the production of Surrounded by Beauties was picking up speed.
This was great news, but also a headache.
The upside was that the game would be finished sooner. The downside? Tetsu's workload was crushing. Surrounded by Beauties was originally a game, so a lot of the story and dialogue didn't quite fit Japan's cultural context, requiring heavy localization. Plus, Tetsu wasn't planning to just copy the game wholesale.
Like I Once Thought About Ending It All, Surrounded by Beauties wasn't just about artistry—it tapped into the pulse of the times. It's a simple logic: all entertainment is rooted in human desires. No matter how stunning a movie or how creative its… ahem… positions, if you show it to someone who's just, say, "exhausted" and in sage mode, they won't care.
The explosive success of I Once Thought About Ending It All wasn't just because it was catchy or had great lyrics. A huge part of it was that it resonated with modern Japanese youth, who face immense mental pressure. The song gave them catharsis and strength. In an era of social isolation and stress, it struck a chord with so many.
Surrounded by Beauties was similar—it catered to the emotional needs of today's gamers. But in terms of depth, it couldn't hold a candle to I Once Thought About Ending It All. Tetsu's job was to tweak the content without gutting its core.
It was a pain. The story needed reworking, the dialogue needed rewriting, and the deadlines were tight. The pressure was intense.
Tetsu was swamped, and it wasn't just the production team's stress. Things at NTsoft were turbulent, too. The main issue came from Division Three's Kazuma Studio.
Kazuma Studio was already a powerhouse within Division Three, and now they were gearing up to compete with Tetsu's team by making a galgame. To stack the deck, Division Three had even reassigned staff from other teams to help.
Galgames aren't that complex—some are made by teams of just three or four people. Kazuma Studio was using Live2D tech, which makes character art move dynamically, but even that wasn't a huge hurdle. With their beefed-up team, their game was nearly done.
And the kicker? Division Three, flush with cash and backed by the company president, bought the rights to a hit light novel from a couple of years ago, My Stepmom Can't Possibly Be This Cute. The story is the backbone of a galgame, and they'd snagged a ready-made, well-known IP in the romance light novel scene.
It was clear Division Three wasn't just throwing a tantrum—they were serious about dominating the galgame market.
The company was buzzing with gossip. Most people didn't think Tetsu stood a chance against Kazuma Studio, which had a strong team, extra manpower, and a popular IP like My Stepmom Can't Possibly Be This Cute. The loudest naysayer was Deputy Director Yamanaka. After getting chewed out by Tetsu once, he knew better than to confront him directly. Instead, he'd lurk in the corner like a hyena, glaring at Tetsu with a smug, shady look whenever he came to give a report.
But…
"Whatever. Too many debts to worry about." Tetsu sighed. "Man, Mount Fuji in winter is freezing."
In the chilly winter wind at a rest area near Mount Fuji, Tetsu stepped out of the car, his black trench coat and polished shoes doing little to shield him from the cold biting at his neck. He shivered, rubbing his hands together. Just then, Sayako, bundled up in a puffy white down jacket, slammed the car door and trotted over to him.
"Seriously, you'll catch a cold if you keep going from hot to cold like this!" she scolded, pouting as she stood on her tiptoes to wrap a thick black scarf around his neck.
Tetsu chuckled, watching her breath form little clouds in the cold air, her charming face slightly flushed from the chill. He cupped her soft cheeks and planted a quick kiss, squishing them together. "Didn't I know you'd bring me a scarf?"
"Hey! Stop it! Nogi and the others are right behind us!" Sayako blushed, flustered but sweet, as she finished tying his scarf. She was about to say something when a tour bus pulled into the rest area.
"Park right here!" Sayako called, running over to guide the bus, her puffy jacket bouncing with her steps.
Tetsu smiled at the adorable sight, hands in his coat pockets, breath visible in the cold air. He glanced back at the majestic Mount Fuji.
"Once we wrap up the hot spring and skiing scenes, we're almost done. Speaking of hot springs…" He patted the pocket holding two tickets to a hot spring resort.
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