After school that afternoon, since Hazuki had finished her contract, Ichin invited Haruno to head directly to the company to sign the shareholder agreement.
Naturally, Yukino was coming along too, so the usual Service Club activities were canceled for the day.
"Buying shares, huh…"
Sitting in the car, Eriri glanced at Ichin, who was in the driver's seat, and asked, "I want to invest too. Is that okay?"
Ichin turned to look at Eriri, then started the car as he said, "It's fine by me—but do you have the money? If it's just a small amount, you won't be able to get much equity."
"Of course I know that! Don't treat me like an idiot!"
Eriri pouted. "I don't have much in savings myself, but I can talk to my mom. If she thinks it's a good idea, I'll ask her to give me some investment funds!"
"Sure, go ahead and ask Aunt Sayuri to evaluate it. If you're serious about investing, I'll set aside some shares for you."
Aside from the shares reserved for Hazuki and the others, Ichin didn't plan on offering too much equity to outside investors.
But when it came to Eriri, he didn't mind making an exception.
Putting aside the Sawamura family's background, Eriri herself was a top-tier artist—a major player in her own right. A talent like hers was something Ichin had no reason to pass up.
With Eriri becoming more involved in the company over the past few days, it was clear that she had decided to build her future in the game industry. Naturally, Ichin's company was her first choice.
One was from the Yukinoshita family, the other from the Sawamura family. Even though on paper it was just the daughters buying in, the connections they brought would no doubt become valuable resources in the future.
If Ichin were to look for other shareholders outside this circle, he simply wouldn't be able to trust them.
It was still best to keep the majority of the shares in his own hands.
Yukino, who was sitting beside Eriri, had already learned last night about the real reason her sister wanted her to invest.
After a moment of silence, she spoke up.
"Senpai, regarding the shares… I don't think I need them. Letting my sister invest is enough."
"Telling me that won't help."
Ichin smiled. "Haruno didn't do this for herself. She's doing it for you. This is her way of showing she cares and providing you with a safety net. Can you really bring yourself to reject that?"
When Yukino didn't reply, Ichin continued,
"It's fine to want to stand on your own. But that doesn't mean you should avoid using the resources available to you. Unless you're planning to cut ties with your family completely, you'll never escape the Yukinoshita name.
Look at me—my study abroad expenses were paid by my family. The studio's original location? My dad paid for it. The money I earned from my first game went into running the studio, buying equipment, and paying everyone's salaries.
Your starting line is already ahead of most people. Even if you say you're not relying on your family, no one else will believe that.
You don't care about others' opinions when you're at school, so why let it affect you now? Don't get caught up in such pointless stubbornness."
Utaha, sitting in the passenger seat, added,
"He's right. You're not stealing or cheating anyone—so why not use your family's resources? Yukino, sometimes you really should learn from this guy next to you. Just to hide her otaku identity and the fact that she's Eriri Spencer Sawamura a.k.a. Kashiwagi Eiri, Aunt Sayuri had to pull a lot of strings for her."
"Hey! Don't drag me into this conversation!"
Eriri's face turned bright red as she loudly retorted, then turned to Yukino and said,
"I think they're absolutely right. If you can use those resources, then use them. If you feel bad about it, just prove yourself with your accomplishments later and show your family what you're capable of! Once you become the top lawyer in the country, who would dare to bring up your background anymore? At that point, your family will be the one relying on you!"
Yukino couldn't help but smile a little at Eriri's words.
"The number one lawyer in the country... Even I don't really have the confidence to aim for that. I just want to do what a lawyer should—stand for justice."
After being lectured by all three of them, Yukino really didn't feel so hung up on the investment issue anymore.
Ichin was right—no matter what she did, she couldn't escape the Yukinoshita name.
Rather than getting caught up in pointless thoughts, it would be better to focus on preparing for university.
She was a second-year now. If she prepared well over the next two years, getting into Tokyo University without fail was the most important thing on her mind.
Well—no, there was one more thing that was equally important:
After moving into her new place, she had to adopt a kitten!
Thinking of that, Yukino spoke up before they reached the company:
"Um, I've already found a new apartment and I'm moving in on Saturday. Then, on Sunday, I'm planning to go to the stray animal rescue center to adopt a cat. Do you want to come with me?"
"I'm in!"
Eriri raised her hand first in excitement. "Yukino, you're finally adopting a cat! I'll totally come with you!"
Utaha turned in her seat to look at Yukino.
"Sure, I'll come along too. What about you, Ichin?"
"If everyone's going, then I'll go too," Ichin replied with a smile. "I can drive us, which makes everything easier."
He then asked, "Yukino, have you told your sister about this yet?"
"Nope."
Yukino quickly shook her head. "Other things are fine, but not this. At least not for now. If I tell her, she'll absolutely get carried away and jump in, throwing all my plans into chaos."
Given her sister's personality—even though their relationship had gotten a lot better—there were still many things Yukino preferred to keep her distance from.
Eriri pulled out her phone and searched for the address of the animal rescue center.
"Hmm, looks like it's kinda far. Going alone wouldn't be very convenient. And if we do end up adopting a cat on the spot, we'll need to go buy all sorts of supplies—cat bed, food, litter, everything. Yeah, we'll definitely need Ichin to drive us. Actually, Ichin, buying a car has really paid off! When I go to Akihabara to buy games, can I get a ride too?"
"Take the train yourself."
"Ugh, stingy."
Ichin glanced at the pouty Eriri in the rearview mirror and said with exasperation,
"You don't even live that far from Akihabara—it's just a few stops by train. And you're still trying to bum a ride off me? Can't you just ask Aunt Sayuri to drive you?"
Leaning back in her seat, Eriri replied without hesitation,
"No way. Even though Mom's a hardcore otaku too, she's also a hardcore fujoshi. If I go to Akihabara with her, she'll absolutely drag me into all those BL merch shops and give me a full-on lecture. I don't want any part of that! Back in the day, she even made me draw a BL doujin—that's one of the darkest stains in my history!"
If Eriri hadn't brought it up, everyone might have forgotten—but the truth was, Sayuri Sawamura's reputation in the otaku scene was far more seasoned than Eriri's.
And her tastes… were definitely beyond mainstream.
Looking at Eriri's expression filled with trauma and regret, Ichin thought for a moment.
If he had time, he'd give her a ride—he often went to Akihabara himself anyway.
...
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