Tokyo's Most Affectionate - Chapter 140

Adorable Ninomiya Chizuru

Kurosawa was a bit surprised, especially considering the information Itsuragi had revealed earlier.

Could it be that Miss Ninomiya, who appeared so elite and capable, actually couldn’t do any household chores? 

With this possibility in mind, a sudden realization struck Kurosawa as he thought about the upcoming second date.

“The funds for the ‘Outdoor Sketching Trip with Ninomiya Chizuru’ cover Western and Japanese cuisine. Could it be that she likes guys who can cook because she can’t cook herself?

It was highly possible; otherwise, the system wouldn’t provide funds for this kind of date. 

After all, the existence of provided funds was not just a reward; it was tailored to the preferences of the other person.

As for the timing of this date, with a time limit of 240 hours, he had calculated and set it for next Saturday. 

As for next Sunday, he still had to go to the Windchaser Dojo to meet Shiromiya; after all, he hadn’t spent time with her this week.

To say or not to say, even though weekdays were quite leisurely, the time on weekends was genuinely not enough.

I must show off my skills and prepare a feast for her.

Realizing this, Kurosawa made a silent decision.

Things that can earn goodwill, why not do them?

In fact, even if he didn’t have these two skills, he could still cook Chinese dishes.

In his previous life, he had worked in many jobs, including a stint as a chef.

Although he mainly worked as a kitchen assistant, handling tasks like preparing ingredients and marinating, at least he had learned how to marinate dishes, making him more skilled than the average person.

Chatting and laughing, they stopped at a convenience store and bought three warm bento boxes.

Upon reaching the office, they went straight to the third-floor lounge. Even if work was about to begin, they needed to eat first.

After sitting down, Ninomiya took off her mask and sunglasses, retrieved a glasses case from her bag, and put on a pair of rimless glasses.

“Wearing these glasses gives you more charm,” Kurosawa praised upon seeing this.

Although Ichinose had worn glasses in yesterday’s hotel shoot, they were large-framed glasses, aiming for a literary girl vibe.

But considering she was academically challenged, the impression she gave was more on the cute side.

In comparison, Ninomiya with rimless glasses exuded a strikingly cool and intellectual vibe.

“You’re not hungry? Go ahead and eat,” Ninomiya didn’t expect such a compliment from him, and her heart started beating a bit faster. 

She casually brushed her hair with her hand and remained composed.

“I’ll start then.”

With a neat slogan, the three of them began to eat.

“By the way, do we really not need to hire a photographer? Even if it’s a fixed position, it still needs to be set up. Just so you know, I won’t be able to handle a camera,” Itsuragi expressed her concern about the upcoming shoot while eating.

Finally, the day of the shoot arrived, and the closer it got, the more nervous she became. The success of this shoot was closely tied to the development of the agency’s business.

If Kurosawa could gain some recognition through this shoot, the subsequent tasks would become easier. On the other hand, if the first step didn’t go well, things would become more challenging.

“There’s nothing complicated about handling a camera. You just need to turn it on, set it in the right position, and aim at the lens. I can handle it,” Kurosawa reassured her, showing no concerns.

Now, with his elite-level piano skills, which were at a world-class level, all he needed to do was start playing, there was no need to worry at all.

“You’re underestimating photographers too much by saying that. Let me tell you, a photographer with good skills is more important than both models and actors.”

Seeing him acting completely indifferent and overly confident, Itsuragi gave him a disapproving look.

Confidence is good, but arrogance is not.

Sometimes, the key to things lies in the details, and one must never treat them carelessly.

“Is that so?”

Ninomiya chimed in, looking a bit surprised.

Although she learned about the model’s talented photographer in last night’s group chat, she didn’t expect the photographer to be more important than the model.

“Do you remember the model from last night?” Itsuragi nodded.

“I remember.”

“I did some research last night. She has a stage name, Ichinose Miyuki. She has appeared in ‘YG’ magazine, which is a third-rate fashion magazine, as a model for many issues. 

Despite the good results in her photos and occasional appearances on the cover, all combined, it still doesn’t compare to the three photos I sent last night. That’s the difference a photographer can make.”

“Is that photographer really that skilled?”

Ninomiya was somewhat surprised, but upon reflection, the quality of those few photos was indeed exceptional.

“Based on my experience and intuition, those photos might not even have gone through post-processing. Do you know what that means? That photographer has a first-class level of skill recognized nationwide.”

“Wow, nationwide.” Ninomiya expressed her surprise without changing her expression.

Beside her, Kurosawa was truly charmed by her reaction.

“I’ve signed many artists before. You guys probably don’t know how troublesome it is to hire a photographer of this caliber. You need to make appointments, and it costs a fortune.”

Itsuragi, accustomed to her casual attitude, rolled her eyes and continued to explain.

They were going to develop in the entertainment industry in the future, and such information was essential.

“Shouldn’t stylists be more important for artists?” Kurosawa was a bit puzzled.

Although photographers are essential, he still believed that styling was more crucial.

For example, in his previous life, he saw some suspected celebrity fashion disasters caused by displeasing stylists.

Even though those celebrities had high looks, they could be directly ruined by the hands of stylists.

In addition, some stars’ images skyrocketed due to having better stylists.

“Everything is important. To use a game as an example, if artists are classified based on factors like looks, physique, and talent, then photographers and stylists are like equipment. The higher the level of the equipment, the stronger the artist can unleash their abilities.”

Itsuragi nodded in response to this question and then explained.

The rise of an artist requires effort and resources in many aspects.

Makeup, styling, photography, operations, promotion, and public relations teams… The essence of these things is resources, or one could say money.

As long as there’s money, everything can be handled.

“Oh, I see.”

Ninomiya nodded, stole a glance at Kurosawa beside her, and then continued to eat the bento. She wasn’t very interested in the topic of artists.

In this agency, as long as she and Kurosawa stayed together, there was no need to worry about being discovered. That was enough for her. 

As for how big and strong they could become and how much money they could earn, she wasn’t very concerned at the moment. They could think about it when the time came.

“Miss Runa still plays games?”

Kurosawa, not feigning interest, nodded as if understanding something and then expressed curiosity.

The personalities of the two women were different—for example, Itsuragi had a more lively and outgoing personality, eloquent and friendly—her style was very trendy, sexy, and fashionable, completely different from a student. She gave off a charming yet refined vibe.

Someone like her seemed to be an expert in matters of the heart or perhaps a successful person in life, not the type to play games.

“I play occasionally because Fujiwara Rika has endorsed several popular games,” Itsuragi nodded and explained.

“Speaking of which, after you left Illusion Star, did Miss Fujiwara contact you?”

Hearing her mention this name, Ninomiya suddenly asked.

Before this, Itsuragi’s attention to Fujiwara Rika even surpassed her attention to Kurosawa.

Curious about this topic, Kurosawa also became interested, realizing that she had forgotten about it before.

“No… I sent her a message on the day I left, and she replied with just ‘got it’ and hasn’t responded to me since.”

Hearing this, Itsuragi paused for a moment and then shrugged.

“Is it really that simple?” Kurosawa was a bit surprised.

In theory, it shouldn’t be that simple, right?

Fujiwara Rika was the one Itsuragi discovered and brought to fame. That was a favor and recognition.

“It’s simpler this way. She has the entire resource team of Illusion Star helping her now, so she doesn’t really need me that much. It’s more accurate to say that my existence means splitting the money with her.”

Itsuragi calmly accepted this outcome, smiling self-deprecatingly.

“I don’t think she ever cared that you were sharing the profits with her. It’s just that the situation happened suddenly, and you decided to resign before contacting her. She didn’t know what to say at that moment, but she’ll probably reach out to you later.”

Seeing her smile, Ninomiya, who knew her well, comforted her.

The current situation indeed happened too suddenly.

Putting oneself in her shoes, if Kurosawa was perfectly fine attending classes yesterday and decided to drop out today, she wouldn’t know what to say either. 

After all, when the other party makes such a major decision without informing or discussing it beforehand, what can you say? You can only accept reality.

Moreover, Fujiwara Rika’s annual income of over a billion, hundreds of millions was given to the company. How could she possibly care about the little over ten million given to Itsuragi?

“Too sudden, huh…”

After hearing this, Itsuragi fell into silence for a moment, her eyebrows slightly furrowed. Upon careful consideration, she indeed overlooked this matter.

“Why are you two looking at me like that? Resigning to start a business and becoming a boss is a good thing, not a bad thing. Hurry up and eat; we’ll start shooting soon.”

After pondering for a moment, she looked up and found both of them staring at her dryly. Relaxing her brows, she jokingly scolded them.

Interestingly, these two people sitting on the same side, looking at her with similar expressions, really had a couple-like appearance. Truly a perfect match.

“Actually, before today, I specifically searched online for how to use a camera. You don’t have to worry about the set-up and fixed positions later.” Seeing her smile, Kurosawa thought for a moment and spoke.

Upon careful consideration, Itsuragi had truly abandoned her efforts for many years and resigned to venture out with him.

He couldn’t let her down with this determination. He was determined to make her not regret her decision and even, many years later, look back at today as a good one.

“Why didn’t you say that earlier? I was thinking I’d have to study how to use the camera again before we start shooting later.”

Realizing that Kurosawa had made preparations in advance, Itsuragi rolled her eyes at him. 

He had just been overly confident, and she had worried for nothing.