Great Mangaka

The investigation results were quickly known.

However, this result surprised many. Fate/Stay Night was leaked by a game designer, and his original intention was not malicious.

The cause of the incident was due to the rush to finish the game in the last two weeks. To speed up the progress, Hinotori Publishing had only one holiday yesterday. During the holiday, the designer was kind enough to help the company recruit staff. He had a good friend who was also a game designer, so he invited him to work at Hinotori Publishing.

The designer revealed some things about Fate/Stay Night, but he hadn't expected his friend to leak the news to a journalist.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm very sorry...".

The designer bowed and apologized in Takumi's office, but Alice, who was interrogating him, didn't appreciate it: "Don't apologize; how much content did you leak?"

"Apart from the price, the general structure, and the gameplay, there's not much to say about the content..." The designer wiped his sweat and carefully explained: "But I have some favorite characters, and I told them about their settings."

"Characters?" Alice stood up and asked: "What characters?"

"Hero King Gilgamesh, Saber, the Traitorous Witch Medea..."

"You leaked Saber!" Alice immediately stood up, and the designer, startled, stammered: "Yes, yes, I said Saber...".

The worst situation still occurred. Saber is the female protagonist of Fate/Stay Night, so it's normal for the designer to talk about her. But the newspaper didn't publish it. Alice held a glimmer of hope and asked who his friend was.

In the afternoon, Alice found the leaker. However, this person had sold the news about Saber at a very high price. And there was more than one media outlet, so the leak was almost inevitable.

Alice discussed countermeasures at Takumi's house.

"I fired that designer." She sat on the sofa and said coldly: "And as for the villain who sold the news to the reporter, his company promised to fire him."

Takumi was not surprised, but the dismissal of these two people did not solve the problem: "Will this matter become serious? What should we do now?"

He thought the matter wouldn't be that serious. In any case, the game designer knew something about the industry. He would tell others about the Saber matter, so it shouldn't be a big problem.

"It may not become serious. It's not illegal. Most people are unaware of this prohibition's existence." Alice said: "But you have a great reputation in Osaka, and an insignificant matter can easily attract others' attention, so you must be prepared for regulatory authorities to notice you."

"How to prepare?" asked Takumi, pouring himself a glass of water.

"Speed up the process; speed is everything." Alice explained: "Today I carefully reviewed the regulations, and they're not that bad. If regulatory authorities detect tomorrow's report, they will investigate first, and since we're a new game, it will take at least one or two months to get the results."

"Even if they take this matter seriously, they cannot prevent us from selling it in three weeks, so we develop the game and sell it ahead of schedule. There will be no problem."

The basic production of Fate/Stay Night is already complete, and if the process is accelerated, it can be launched in two weeks.

Takumi felt relieved: "Do you mean that this incident will have no impact?"

"Yes, it was a false alarm." Alice smiled bitterly. Only after investigating did she discover the government's inefficiency: "The early launch is our victory. Do you know how accidental damage or ATM leaks are handled?"

"No, is it related to this incident?"

"Yes, the principle is similar." Alice smiled: "If someone takes extra money from an ATM, as long as it's a problem with the ATM itself, Japanese law stipulates that the bank will be responsible and the person who withdraws the money will not be blamed. When our game is released, the responsibility will also fall on the regulatory authorities. They will correct the loopholes, but there's no reason to blame us."

"However."

She paused and looked at Takumi: "You'd better stay away from the company."

Takumi frowned slightly: "What do you mean?"

"If Saber's identity is revealed in advance, even if there are no legal problems with the game's launch, people will take the opportunity to speak ill of you." Alice explained: "This is not good for your reputation. I suggest you step away and let the company handle the subsequent production of this game. Then you can say that the company insists."

The basic setting of Fate/Stay Night is already finished, the scripts are already on the computer, the prototypes of each character are perfected, and the music and animation will be ready soon. Alice feels that Takumi doesn't need to continue participating.

"But... if I leave, who will take care of all the work?" Takumi asked.

"I will." Alice didn't give him a chance to refuse and said: "I've been helping you all this time. I'm the only person who knows Fate/Stay Night better than you. I'll take care of the rest of the work, and there will be no accidents."

Takumi still hesitated: "Then I still have to go to the company to help with Bakuman and...".

"You don't have to do those manga." Alice interrupted, shook her head, and said: "You've already prepared the sketches and drawings for Bakuman and Ouran High School Host Club. Their serialization doesn't require your help, so you can take a break!"

Ouran High School Host Club and Bakuman, although both works are in Mirai-sensei's name, contain complete information and perfect character settings, and can be completed by the mangaka's assistants. In addition, the editorial department staff are very enthusiastic about these manga, and the editors, both male and female, will supervise and guarantee their quality.

"Takumi, take this opportunity to rest." Alice looked at Takumi and said: "Human energy is not infinite. You must learn to let others do things and not interfere in everything... You are intelligent, capable, and your diligence is impressive."

"But because of that, you must take better care of your health. You cannot waste it just because you are young."

Alice stood up and approached Takumi. She extended her hand and touched his head.

"Rest a little, okay? I'm worried about your life. Thousands of young talents died young. I might have said something harsh... But for the sake of the future, I hope you can take good care of yourself."

Takumi frowned slightly when Alice touched him. He didn't like being treated like a child: "Do you think I'm very hardworking?"

"Well, I think everyone would think the same...". Alice lowered her hand and said: "You work too much and don't rest at all. I heard Miyuki say that yesterday you asked her about the forum."

Obviously, yesterday was a holiday.

For others, Takumi is a workaholic, and he is still young. His body has not yet matured. If he works too much and hinders his physical growth, he will become sickly later in life. Alice is worried.

"Takumi, Alice is right." Aika, who had been beside him, came out to persuade him: "You should relax, take some time, and play a little."

Her words were more effective than Alice's, and Takumi fell into deep thought.

Hinotori Publishing had overcome the most dangerous situation. The quality of the two magazines was getting better and better, and sales were increasing. Pokémon's popularity had also generated continuous profits for the company, and Fate/Stay Night's research and development were also progressing perfectly.

For now, it can be said that Takumi had met Genji's requirements ahead of schedule. Hinotori Publishing was progressing steadily, and its prospects were promising. As soon as half a year passed, Takumi would become the company's main shareholder.

Furthermore, Kanto Manga Company's elite mangaka had not yet come out. If Takumi left his current job, he could accumulate energy and come out when Kanto made a move.

"Okay..." He nodded slowly, but he was still worried about one question: "But I'm leaving, Alice, aren't you tired?"

As soon as he avoided her, all the work fell on Alice. In addition to Fate/Stay Night, this woman is also in charge of manga review, which will give her more work than Takumi.

"I'm fine."

Alice smiled: "Back then, being an agent was even harder. I often woke up in the middle of the night to make a call and had to run around every day, taking care of others like a nanny."

Takumi was very worried about her experience, but the difficulties she mentioned were not just about work...

"Alice..." After thinking for a while, Takumi asked her what she felt: "Answer me truthfully, you're always busy because of me; will your family have any objections?"

"My father agreed, and my mother occasionally said something...".

"Where's your husband?"

"Husband?" Alice's face suddenly became complicated: "I don't want to talk about this. I just want you to know that work makes me feel good. Now I hate staying at home."

Takumi fell silent. Alice didn't want to talk about family matters, so he couldn't keep asking. At night, after Alice left, Aika, who had seen her off, returned home and looked at Takumi sadly.

"Takumi, don't mention Alice's family matters again."

"Why?"

Takumi asked, a little confused.

"Every time I mention this topic, her face gets sad." Aika sat next to Takumi and said: "She surely has conflicts with her husband. Alice is very old, but she still has no children...".

"I don't know if it's her husband's problem or Alice's problem...",

Takumi replied, almost spitting out water.

"Mom, how did you come up with these things?"

He felt that Aika's imagination was bigger than his. Alice's expression wasn't entirely right, and she actually related it to the child.

"Are you surprised? Actually, I'm not surprised at all...". Aika became interested and told Takumi: "Mom,

I'm telling you, no matter what kind of family it is, if there are no children after marriage, the relationship between husband and wife will definitely be bad!"

"That's what they show on TV."

Takumi felt overwhelmed, but he also vaguely understood that Alice's life was in trouble and that he couldn't leave everything to Alice.

Whether for Alice's sake or his own, Takumi felt that he needed to find a comprehensive assistant.

"I'll find an assistant while I'm resting..."

- - - - - -

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