Female protagonists from various anime/manga crossovers? They'll all regret it for the rest of

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"Don't let the first episode be a masterpiece, only to turn into a PowerPoint presentation by the third episode."

"You, you don't need to worry about it!" Eriri turned around sharply and glared at Shiho, like a cat whose tail had been stepped on.

"Of course I'll take full responsibility for my work, down to the bottom of the dam! But you, Xia Shizi, stop just talking!"

"Hehe, I will only keep raising the ceiling of my work, unlike some people whose ceiling is just that high."

Seeing that the two were about to start their usual bickering again, Yudou interrupted them with a smile: "Alright, alright, we are a team, and the success of the PV is the result of everyone's joint efforts."

He was genuinely happy.

The quality of this PV exceeded his expectations.

Director Kinoshita's cinematic language, Eriri's character design, Utaha's script polishing, and... Nanami and Yuzuriha's voices.

Everything blended together perfectly.

However, along with the joy came a heavy pressure.

The popularity of the PV means that countless eyes are on this work, and expectations have been raised to an unprecedented level.

As the original author, he can no longer hide behind the scenes as before; he must step into the spotlight and bear the halo and scrutiny that come with this success.

“Speaking of which…” Kato Megumi suddenly pointed to a highly-rated comment in the comments section, “This comment got a lot of likes.”

Yuto leaned closer to take a look.

"Who is Anna's voice actress? Is she a newcomer? Her voice is so expressive! That desperate, fragile vulnerability is absolutely amazing! I declare Anna my wife!"

The following is a series of "俺も".

Yuto could almost see the expression on that stubborn yet hardworking Kansai girl's face when she saw these comments, a mixture of wanting to cry and laugh.

……

That's exactly what happened.

In Aoyama Nanami's rented room, she was kneeling in front of the computer, playing the PV over and over again.

When I heard Anna, the character I voiced, say the line, "As your sword and shield, Anna... I will do anything!", tears finally welled up and fell uncontrollably.

Countless bullet comments scrolled across the screen.

"This new voice actor is going to be a star!"

"There's a story in that voice, I love it."

"I looked it up, her name is Aoyama Nanami, I've followed her!"

She covered her mouth to stop herself from crying out loud.

Those nights when they were scolded mercilessly by Coach Takahashi, those lonely nights practicing alone with the script until late at night, all turned into scalding tears at this moment, and were released in full.

My phone vibrated; it was a message from Itsuka Yuto.

"See? Everyone loves your voice acting for Anna. You're a real voice actress now, Nanami Aoyama."

A short sentence, yet it was like a warm current that instantly flowed through Nanami's entire body.

She wiped away her tears, her eyes becoming more resolute than ever before.

Thank you, Mr. Wuhe.

……

Meanwhile, at Itsuka Yuto's home.

Yuzuriha Inori was completely unaware of the online uproar.

She was wearing headphones, sitting on the sofa, and gently humming along to the melody in the music video.

For her, how many people hear the song or how much praise it receives is far less important than the joy the melody itself brings her.

She had no concept of success and no interest in fame or fortune. This purity made her like an ethereal spirit, isolated from all the disturbances of the outside world.

……

Meanwhile, Eriri's phone screen lit up with a message from Akane Kousaka.

"I watched the PV. The character design is okay, and I can barely be considered to have entered the field. However, the dynamic expression is insufficient, and many details have been simplified for the sake of drawing convenience. This is a common problem for amateur doujinshi artists."

"In the next phase, I want you to draw fifty different facial expressions of the main characters under three different extreme emotions within a week. Remember, it must be an industrial-grade standard, and no flaws in personal style are allowed."

The slight sense of pride that had just arisen from the successful PV was instantly extinguished by a bucket of cold water.

Eriri stared at the message, biting her lip.

……

Just then, Yuto received a call from producer Masato Ando.

"Itsuka-sensei! A resounding success! A complete and utter success!" Ando's voice was distorted with excitement on the other end of the phone.

"Strike while the iron is hot! We must strike while the iron is hot! I've already discussed it with the publicity department, and next weekend we'll hold a signing event and meet-and-greets with the creators of 'Farming King' at the largest anime mall in Akihabara!"

"A meet-and-greet with the main cast?" Yuto's heart skipped a beat.

"That's right! You, as the original author, along with Ms. Nanami Aoyama, the voice actress for the head maid, and Ms. Inori Yuzuriha, the singer of the theme song, will all be attending!"

"I've already seen the headline—'A Miraculous Encounter Between a Genius Original Author and Two Rising Stars'! It's absolutely going to be a sensation!"

Yuto held his phone, glanced at Utaha and Eriri who were still bickering beside him, and then thought about the otherworldly Yuzuriha Inori and the innocent Nanami.

……

Akihabara, Saturday afternoon.

Under the scorching sun, the entrance to the Gamers flagship store was already packed with people.

On the huge promotional poster, the male and female protagonists of "Farming King" look dashing, and next to them is the theme of today's event written in eye-catching font: "Original author's beautiful girl knight & voice actor & singer joint autograph session".

The atmosphere in the backstage dressing room was far less lively than outside.

"Itsuka-sensei, what... what should I say next? Will I say something wrong?" Aoyama Nanami was so nervous that her palms were clenching and sweating.

She was wearing a maid outfit tailor-made for the character of Anna, which made her appear even more uneasy.

This was the first time in her life that she had participated in such a grand offline event. Facing hundreds and thousands of fans and media, she felt like she was suffocating.

"Relax, just like you would when recording normally, treat them all like cabbages," Yuto comforted her with a smile, handing her a bottle of water.

"But……"

"There's no 'buts' about it. You're Anna's voice actress, you're standing here because of your talent, so be confident." Yuto's reassuring tone calmed Nanami down a bit.

On the other side, Yuzuriha Inori sat quietly in the corner, fiddling with her red hair clip, completely unaware of the tense atmosphere around her.

For her, there is no essential difference between singing on stage later and singing on the streets of Shibuya.

Producer Ando tried several times to explain the precautions to her after going on stage, but in the end, he was defeated by her pure and innocent eyes and could only sigh helplessly.

Yuto watched this scene with a mixture of amusement and exasperation.

One is overly tense, the other is overly relaxed—this combination is truly...wonderful.

Just then, the door of the lounge was pushed open.

A figure wearing a long dress and a white headband walked in, her high heels clicking crisply on the floor.

The person who came was Xia Zhi Er Cu Liu Cu 1 Ci Liu Qiu Shi Yu.

"Oh dear, it seems I'm not too late." She looked around, her gaze finally settling on Yuto, a meaningful smile on her face.

"As a colleague of Shinazugawa Bunko, it's only natural for a senior to come and support a junior's first book signing event, right?"

Producer Ando's eyes lit up, and he quickly went to greet her: "Ms. Kasumi Shiko! It's so wonderful that you could come! This is the icing on the cake!"

Kasumi Shiko, a bestselling light novel author, undoubtedly added a huge buzz to the event with her presence.

Yuto felt a chill run down his spine.

A platform? They're probably here to cause trouble.

Shiyu walked over to Yuto and naturally straightened his collar, saying in a voice only the two of them could hear, "Don't be nervous, I'm just here to help you 'maintain order'."

No sooner had he finished speaking than the door to the lounge was pushed open again.

Eriri Sawamura Spencer, dressed in a gorgeous dress, her golden twin tails drawing two bright arcs in the air with her movements.

He stormed in angrily.

Behind her followed Akane Akasaka, who looked utterly helpless.

“Ms. Akasaka said that as the illustrator of the work, I have an obligation to come to the site to understand the direct feedback from the fans, which is beneficial to my creation.”

Eriri stood with her hands on her hips, trying to make her reasons sound plausible, but her eyes, fixed on Shiho, betrayed her true intentions.

Aoyama Nanami stared in disbelief at the scene before her, completely bewildered by what had happened.

Yuzuriha Inori tilted her head, curiously sizing up the two pretty new girls.

Producer Ando II (IV) ⊙?? Chess (II) ?Scratching. He looked at Utaha, then at Eriri, and sweat was dripping down his face.

One is Shizuka Kasumi, and the other is Eri Kashiwagi. Both of them are industry giants, and neither of them can afford to offend the other.

He could only manage a forced laugh, trying to ease the tension.

...Reiwa II1, Shimizumi 2-Kyū

The activity officially begins.

When the host announced the arrival of the original author, Bishoujo Kashiwagi-sensei, and special guests, Kasumi Utako-sensei and Kashiwagi Eri-sensei, the flashbulbs in the audience instantly went off.

The media reporters were absolutely thrilled.

A mysterious genius author, surrounded by aspiring voice actresses, angelic singers, senior writers, childhood friends and illustrators... This is simply the best gossip material of the year!

The autograph session went relatively smoothly, but things gradually got out of control during the Q&A session.

"Excuse me, Ms. Beautiful Knight," a reporter seized the opportunity to ask a question, "you, along with Ms. Kasumi Utako and Ms. Kashiwagi Eri, are all top creators in the industry. Could you talk about your personal relationships?"

Before Yuto could speak, Shiho had already picked up the microphone, smiled slightly, and said, "Itsuka-sensei and I have a mutually beneficial teaching relationship. As his senior, I often give him some 'in-depth' guidance on literary creation."

"After all, some of the subtleties of emotion require the guidance of experience."

She emphasized the word "in-depth," which drew a meaningful jeer from the audience.

Eriri immediately retorted, "Yuto and I are the ones who understand each other best! We've known each other since we were very young, and I was the first illustrator to see every single one of his stories! My drawings exist solely for his world!"

"Childhood sweethearts? Isn't that the standard for a loser?" Shi Yu chuckled.

"What did you say!"

The two engaged in a lively and witty exchange on stage, their words sparking a lively debate.

Yuto was caught in the middle, feeling utterly overwhelmed.

Aoyama Nanami sat beside him, at a loss, like a little white rabbit that had wandered into a pack of wolves.

She glanced at Utaha-senpai on her left and Eriri on her right, unable to get a word in edgewise, and could only awkwardly smile at the audience.

Yuzuriha Inori, however, was completely absorbed in her own world, oblivious to the exchange on stage, until the host cued her to sing, at which point she stood up and picked up the microphone.

The ethereal and pure singing voice rang out, instantly drowning out all the noise in the venue.

At that moment, everyone was captivated by her singing and temporarily forgot about the farce that had just occurred.

However, after the song ended, the war escalated again.

During the fan interaction segment, a female fan excitedly asked Yuto, "Teacher! What do you find most appealing about the character Anna?"

Before Yuto could answer, Utaha interrupted, "Of course it's that feeling of 'being weak but trying to be strong'."

"In this respect, she is very similar to Ms. Aoyama herself. Both of them need a strong yet gentle person to support them silently in order to shine. Don't you agree, Itsuka-sensei?"

She threw the question back at Yuto, while subtly moving closer to him.

Seeing this, Eriri immediately squeezed over from the other side and took Yuto's arm: "No! Anna's most attractive quality is her loyalty! No matter what danger her master faces, she will never abandon him, and that's the most important thing! Just like... just like me!"

She practically shouted out her innermost thoughts, only realizing her mistake afterward, and her cheeks instantly turned bright red.

"Wow--"

The audience erupted in cheers.

The reporters' cameras clicked like machine guns.

Public execution! This is practically a large-scale public execution scene!