All Beautiful Girls Want to Stick with Me

Merii Hizuki could tell that Kotomi Izumi was still a bit cautious toward them. She quickly suggested, "There's a nice café nearby. It's hard to explain everything standing here. Why don't we sit down there, take a break, and talk? Don't worry, we won't take up too much of your time—just the duration of a cup of coffee."

"Alright."

Kotomi nodded slightly. That café nearby had a lot of customers. In such a public space, there was no way they could drug her, right?

Besides, just now, Kotomi had quietly asked Arisu Sakayanagi if the business card she was given was genuine. Arisu confirmed that it was.

Although she still couldn't figure out why the chief agent of the Heavenly Spider Agency and a top-tier celebrity were suddenly seeking her out, at least these two were real people and not fraudsters.

"Arisu, are you coming too?"

"Of course I'm coming. If anything happens, I can send information directly to our family's bodyguards."

Arisu Sakayanagi made no effort to lower her voice when she said this. Instead, she deliberately let Merii Hizuki and her companion overhear.

Although Merii Hizuki and her companion didn't have any malicious intentions—they were simply hoping to have Kotomi compose music for them—hearing Arisu Sakayanagi's words still made cold sweat break out on their backs.

What's more, they had heard Kotomi call her by name—Arisu?!

Sakayanagi family name, and first name, Arisu… Arisu Sakayanagi…

Merii Hizuki's heart skipped a beat and then sped up by two beats. She hurriedly sent a text message to Miyuki Aomori:

[Miyuki, the little girl accompanying Songfather is terrifying. She's the cherished daughter of the Sakayanagi Financial Group! Be careful later and under no circumstances offend her. Also, today's events must not be mentioned to a third person. Heaven can't know, earth can't know—only the two of us can know.]

[Miriri, I'm scared…]

[Look at you, where's your backbone?! You want to become a phenomenon-level artist with this attitude? In front of Miss Sakayanagi, maintain the proper amount of humility and politeness—but don't grovel. Otherwise, she'll look down on you.]

[Got it.]

When they arrived at the café, Merii Hizuki, worried that Kotomi might feel nervous, chose a spot with relatively more people—a table facing the bar counter—rather than a quieter area more suited for discussions.

"Izumi-san, Sakayanagi-san, feel free to order anything you'd like. Don't hold back; this one's on me."

Kotomi didn't immediately pick up the menu. Instead, she asked in a low voice, "How did you know my last name is Izumi?"

Merii Hizuki had anticipated that Kotomi would ask this question. She nodded slightly and explained, "This all started last night. Miyuki and I held a celebratory party to mark the explosive success of our recently released song. After dinner, since we had a late-night meeting to attend, we decided to drive back to the company. On the way, I felt a bit thirsty, and knowing the meeting would run very late, I got out of the car to buy a can of coffee."

At this point, Merii Hizuki chuckled softly.

"To be honest, after returning to the company last night, I thought about it for a long time. How could the world be so coincidental?

While I was buying coffee at the vending machine, I heard a beautiful singing voice. Out of professional instinct, I instinctively took out my phone to record it and searched for the source of the voice. Then I saw a white-haired young girl walking… a sea cucumber—oh, sorry—a cat."

"Last night, I did indeed take my cat out for a walk. And on the route I took, there was indeed a vending machine at one of the intersections." Kotomi spoke slowly. Once the timing and route matched up, her wariness eased a little.

She then picked up the menu.

"Please forgive me for presumptuously recording your singing," Merii Hizuki explained, "but your voice was simply too beautiful, and the song you sang was one I had never heard before. After getting back in the car, I had Miyuki translate the lyrics for me, and that's when I became determined to find you."

At this point, Merii Hizuki gestured toward Miyuki Aomori. "She studied Chinese extensively in school. She's fluent enough for everyday conversation, reading, and even understanding songs."

"Hello~" Miyuki Aomori greeted Kotomi in Mandarin.

It was impressively fluent.

"And that's when you started looking for me?"

"That's right. Judging by your age and the fact that you were confidently out walking your cat at night, I guessed that you must live in that neighborhood. So, starting at six o'clock this morning, the two of us began searching for you.

We had no luck for half the day, but your distinctive white hair left quite an impression. We eventually asked a local woman in the area, and she told us your name was Kotomi Izumi.

Later in the afternoon, we staked out the traffic light intersection for hours. Just as we were about to call it a day and head back, we saw you standing by the roadside with Miss Sakayanagi."

"Miss Sakayanagi's reflexes are really sharp. I thought I was hiding pretty well, but she spotted me right away," Miyuki Aomori said, somewhat embarrassed.

"It's because your outfit earlier made you look incredibly suspicious. I thought you were a stalker tailing Kotomi Izumi."

Tailing?!

The moment she heard that word, Kotomi's sleepiness vanished. Her energy returned as her mind instantly flashed to the risky black stockings game she had downloaded yesterday.

However, since Arisu was eating at her house today, she couldn't play it as soon as she got home. She'd just have to wait until later.

"Haha, I'm so sorry if I scared you," Miyuki Aomori said with an awkward laugh.

After listening to their explanation, Kotomi couldn't help but twitch the corners of her mouth. Who would have thought that casually singing "All the Way North" while walking her cat last night would be overheard by the chief agent of the Heavenly Spider Agency?

She had often seen Heavenly Spider Agency's name pop up while watching TV.

As one of Japan's top three talent agencies, Heavenly Spider was a big player not only domestically but also across Asia.

After finishing her explanation, Merii Hizuki went straight to the point. "Miss Izumi, here's the thing. I'd like to ask if the song you sang last night is your original work?"

"Yes, it is."

Kotomi answered without hesitation. She had already thought it through. In this world, there was no Vincent Fang. Even if she claimed the song wasn't her work, she wouldn't be able to name another composer when Merii Hizuki inevitably pressed her for details.

Rather than making things awkward for everyone, it was better to simply admit it. Doing so might even help her establish connections in the music industry.

And right in front of her sat one of the big names in the music world—Miyuki Aomori.

Upon hearing Kotomi's confirmation, Merii Hizuki and Miyuki Aomori's eyes lit up. Their hearts raced with excitement, and their hands trembled slightly.

"Miss Izumi… no, Teacher Izumi! I'll do anything you ask, as long as you're willing to write lyrics for me. I'd even work like a horse for you!"

Miyuki Aomori suddenly stood up, grabbed Kotomi's small hand, and looked at her with such excitement that tears were nearly streaming down her face.

Merii Hizuki didn't stop Miyuki Aomori from forgetting her professional demeanor. Instead, she also stood up and bowed deeply to Kotomi.

"We humbly request that you collaborate with the Heavenly Spider Agency. You can name your price—we're prepared to offer a high salary and top-tier contract terms. As long as you're willing to become a composer for Heavenly Spider, we can work out anything!"

Just as Kotomi was about to begin discussing terms, Arisu softly cleared her throat with a slightly icy tone. Her cold gaze fixed on Miyuki Aomori.

"Please rein in your excitement for now. Especially you—don't touch her hand."

The sudden wave of pressure from Arisu startled Miyuki Aomori, who instinctively released Kotomi's hand.

Arisu then forcefully pulled Kotomi's hand to her side, rubbing it vigorously as though it had been contaminated.

This unexpected display of protectiveness left Merii Hizuki and Miyuki Aomori completely dumbfounded.

"Arisu… don't be angry."

Kotomi looked at Arisu with surprise. She hadn't minded Miyuki Aomori suddenly grabbing her hand at all. But Arisu had reacted like a little girl seeing her beloved teddy bear being touched by someone else—she had forced Miyuki Aomori to let go of her hand and pulled it to her side, clearly angry.

Although Arisu was no longer upset, her tone was still unfriendly. She glanced at Kotomi with a hint of jealousy and said, "She touched your hand."

"Ahaha…" Kotomi let out a helpless laugh and then, trying to change the topic, turned to the stunned Merii Hizuki and Miyuki Aomori. "Sorry about that. Where were we? You wanted me to become a composer for you, right?"

"Ah… yes, that's right! Teacher Izumi, to be honest, we've been at our wits' end lately about finding a composer," Merii Hizuki said with a sigh of resignation.

"Heavenly Spider Agency is one of Japan's top three entertainment companies. Surely it shouldn't have any trouble finding a composer?" Kotomi asked in return.

"Hahaha, small companies have their small struggles, and big companies have their big struggles. And for a company like ours, which ranks in the top three nationwide, the challenges can be even greater. While Heavenly Spider Agency has a team of seasoned and professional composers, along with several gold-standard composers—and even some who could be called 'Songfathers'—we still run into difficulties."

Merii Hizuki took a breath before continuing. "The annual rookie season is coming up. To make a singer famous, they obviously need original songs. And at the beginning of November, Miyuki Aomori is scheduled to release her new track as planned."

Kotomi was familiar with rookie season. Every autumn, rookie season was the time for new Japanese singers to debut. Many well-known and successful singers had launched their careers during rookie season. Some exceptionally talented newcomers even received invitations to perform at the Red and White Song Festival.

Out of respect for the new generation, established singers were typically considerate enough not to release new songs during rookie season. After all, the music industry needed fresh talent to thrive. As seniors, they felt it was their duty to support newcomers by leaving the spotlight to them during this time.

Naturally, Heavenly Spider Agency wouldn't miss rookie season. They had already decided which rookie singer they wanted to promote this year. However, there was a major issue: the rookie didn't have an original single yet!

Considering Heavenly Spider's composition team, it should have been impossible for them to lack original songs. But the problem lay in the high expectations of the company's upper management. They were determined to achieve a top-three ranking for Heavenly Spider's rookies this season, which made it absolutely essential to have a standout original track.

"That's exactly what's been giving me a headache," Merii Hizuki said, rubbing her forehead with frustration. "The gold-standard composers all have their hands full with existing projects. They simply don't have the time to write an additional song. And inspiration for composing songs doesn't come on demand. As for the sample tracks submitted by the remaining composers, they're all too standard, too ordinary. None of them stand out. You don't even have to test them to know they won't win during rookie season."

Merii Hizuki sighed deeply, visibly exasperated.

It was no wonder the company's higher-ups were so anxious. They were desperate to achieve results this rookie season.

Despite being one of Japan's top three entertainment companies, Heavenly Spider Agency had underperformed during rookie season for two consecutive years.

The company's best result in the past two years had been launching two rookies into the top 20 rankings a year ago—and even then, they had barely scraped in at the bottom.

As for the top 10 spots, all ten positions had been completely dominated by their two archrivals, Snake Tail Agency and Hela Agency. These two agencies were also among Japan's top three entertainment companies.

Heavenly Spider, Snake Tail, and Hela—these three titans of Japan's entertainment industry were perpetually at odds, always regarding each other with hostility. After all, competition between companies in the same industry often felt like a grudge match.

Watching their competitors shine brightly during rookie season, flaunting their success and practically smacking their lips while eating their fill, the upper management of Heavenly Spider Agency was understandably furious. They could not swallow their pride, and it seemed they were one step away from digging up the ancestral graves of the other two agencies.

As a result, they began pressuring their chief agent, Merii Hizuki.

Under the weight of this pressure, Merii Hizuki had no choice but to turn around and push the burden onto the other agents. At the same time, she made a bold pledge: if their rookie couldn't make it into the top 10, she would voluntarily resign. If they couldn't break into the top 3, she would willingly accept a demotion.

Initially, everything had been going smoothly in promoting their rookie. But then the composition department hit a snag: all the gold-standard composers were tied up!

Despite the unexpected obstacle, the pledge Merii Hizuki made wasn't rescinded. After all, the upper management only cared about the results; they couldn't care less about what challenges arose along the way.

Merii Hizuki hadn't originally intended to bring up these internal issues, but since things had come to this point, she decided to vent her frustrations to Kotomi. It felt almost like coworkers sharing their grievances over drinks after work, as she poured out all her complaints to her.

"What about your company's 'Songfather'?" Kotomi asked.

Hearing this, Merii Hizuki gave a wry smile. "Currently, Heavenly Spider Agency only has one official 'Songfather.' After all, people at that level don't need to worry about money. Most of them prefer to work freelance rather than remain tied to a company.

"The only Songfather we have left at the company is already swamped with a major project and doesn't have any time to spare."

A major project?!

At the mention of money, Kotomi instantly perked up.

"Forgive me for asking, but… how much is this major project worth?"

"Because the client agreed that no revisions would be required and also offered the composer a share of the song's revenue post-release, the base price was lowered slightly. According to the contract, after taxes, this Songfather will receive 85 million yen in compensation."

Ssss… Kotomi couldn't help but take a sharp breath. Suddenly, she felt as if she could see bundles of cash spinning around her, like a group of adorable little angels.

Merii Hizuki didn't stop there and continued explaining, "Based on the profit-sharing arrangement in the contract, once the song surpasses one million downloads, the composer can easily earn this same amount every month from royalties."

As she finished, Merii Hizuki raised her hands and made a gesture to indicate the amount.

No steady work, huge payouts from just a single song, no need to show up at the office, and the freedom to travel the world under the guise of 'seeking inspiration'—the life of a Songfather sounded like a dream come true.

After hearing Merii Hizuki's description, Kotomi couldn't help but feel a twinge of envy. So being a Songfather could be this carefree, this amazing?!

At that moment, Kotomi suddenly felt a growing fondness for the idea of composing music.

After calming herself down, she rested her chin on her interlaced fingers and asked, "So, if I were to collaborate with Heavenly Spider Agency, could I earn as much as that?"

"In theory, yes," Merii Hizuki replied. "But because you've never released any songs before, even though Miyuki and I believe you have the potential to become a Songfather, we can't immediately offer you the same treatment as one."

Fearing that Kotomi might refuse, Miyuki Aomori quickly chimed in, "Of course! With the quality of your song, Teacher Izumi, I have no doubt you'll become a Songfather within a few years. If you're willing to join Heavenly Spider's composition department, we'll do our best to help you quickly rise to the rank of gold-standard composer."

"What's the promotion process like?" Kotomi asked without rejecting the offer outright.

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