A Modest Foundation

"Boss."

"Hello, Boss."

A strange scene was playing out on a bustling commercial street in Tokyo.

A group of delinquents dressed in all sorts of gaudy clothes, many of them tattooed, were bowing to a boy younger than all of them and calling him Boss.

Eiji had already gotten used to it, since he was the one they were calling Boss.

He had told them many times not to use that title, but these delinquents, already immersed in their imagined "underworld," refused to listen.

"It's you guys. How have you been lately?"

"We've been great, thank you, Boss!"

"You don't have to be so loud."

"Where are you headed, Boss?"

"I'm going to Heroic Spirit Pictures."

"I'm free right now. Let me drive you there, Boss."

"Sure."

With that, Eiji got into the car.

Delinquent youths remained a distinctive sight in the Island Nation for quite some time. The economic collapse of the past few years had driven many organized groups back into their old trades and shady businesses.

More importantly, many teenagers were especially susceptible to the so-called righteousness and bushido spirit promoted by these groups, and eagerly imitated them.

As a result, the Island Nation had no shortage of delinquent youths.

There were some at Eiji and Suguru Geto's school as well.

Would Eiji and Suguru Geto be afraid of delinquents who provoked them right to their faces?

And so, after they beat up the small ones, the big ones came. After they beat up the big ones, the old ones came.

But even among Jujutsu Sorcerers, Eiji and Suguru Geto were strong. Even without using their Techniques, they could take on a hundred opponents with nothing but Cursed Energy-enhanced martial arts.

In the end, the two of them beat every delinquent on several nearby streets into submission.

Afterward, those people clung to them, wanting them to become their bosses.

Suguru Geto had no interest in it. He still had to be the lead singer of his band.

After being asked over and over again, Eiji had a sudden lapse in judgment and agreed.

Perhaps he wanted to live a more colorful life after being reborn.

So Eiji put up the money, selected a few steady and reliable people, and opened several shops, sending those guys with nowhere to vent their energy to work there.

When the shops had first opened, plenty of people thought Eiji was just some rich young master and wanted to pull tricks to swindle him out of his money.

Later, Rabbit Escape, which had been monitoring them the entire time, saw all of their little schemes. Eiji then played along, exposed those rotten apples in public, and kicked them out of the group.

The facts proved that most of these so-called delinquents did not have bad hearts. They had simply gone astray for a time. Before long, Eiji had gained quite a few excellent employees and assembled a modest team. They did not possess any great abilities, but they provided Eiji with plenty of conveniences in many small matters.

For example, he received a portion of the profits every month, giving him another source of income besides Exorcising Cursed Spirits.

And most of Heroic Spirit Pictures' employees had been recruited by them.

To summon Heroic Spirits, Eiji needed to gather enough Phantasm Force related to those Heroic Spirits.

But Phantasm Force would not appear out of thin air, which was why companies involved in anime, films, and games were something Eiji had to establish.

At that point, his previously overlooked little team revealed connections Eiji had never expected.

More precisely, it was the parents of those boys and girls.

They were also worried about their children's situations, but they had no good solutions. Between their demanding jobs and daily overtime, they wanted to help but lacked the energy.

Then someone appeared, guided their children back onto the right path, and got them legitimate jobs. Naturally, they were overjoyed.

So when they heard from their children that their boss was recruiting talent for the anime industry, they all kept an eye out for suitable people. On one hand, they wanted to repay Eiji's kindness; on the other, they hoped their children could stand out more in front of a boss like Eiji.

As a result, the film company that Eiji had thought would take him considerable time and many trips to the job market to establish began operating within half a month with these people's help.

With a car for transportation, Eiji quickly arrived at the entrance of Heroic Spirit Pictures.

The moment he entered, the sound of heated debate reached his ears.

"I told you already, there isn't enough runtime. The supporting characters' scenes need to be cut where necessary."

"Ha! Then why cut my part instead of yours?"

Watching the fierce discussion in the room, Eiji nodded in satisfaction.

They were full of spirit.

He then entered the office next door.

"Director Yamaguchi, has the anime production plan been completed?"

Eiji asked as soon as he walked in.

"Young Master Eiji. Please, have a seat. I'll make you some tea."

Director Yamaguchi was currently in charge of the anime production team. The company he had originally worked for had been quite large, but after its boss used company funds to invest through a bank a few years ago and lost everything, the company had been barely hanging on due to a lack of funds.

The core members of the anime production team, including the experienced Director Yamaguchi, had all been poached from that company.

Before long, a steaming cup of tea was placed on the table before Eiji.

Eiji picked up the cup, took a sip, and nodded.

Then three proposal documents were placed in front of him.

After carefully reading the first proposal, Eiji frowned slightly.

Director Yamaguchi promptly began explaining the plan's advantages and disadvantages.

If they followed the first proposal, Fate/stay night would run for fifty-two episodes, and the plot would be somewhat chaotic.

That was because when Eiji had handed Director Yamaguchi the game's story script, he had hoped that he could combine as many of the stories as possible.

At the time, Eiji had wanted to fully showcase every Heroic Spirit's charm in a single anime. Perhaps he could gather the Phantasm Force of all seven Heroic Spirits through one show alone. The facts proved that he had been too greedy.

After reviewing all three proposals, Eiji made his decision.

"Split it into two productions. The first will start with the Fate route and incorporate the UBW route, making it a twenty-six-episode anime. The second will focus on the Sakura route."

In his original world, the 2006 Fate/stay night had actually been a classic Platonic romance, and its story fit the theme of Fate/stay night best.

With its dreamlike atmosphere, that route presented viewers with a flawed beauty they could remember for a lifetime.

That was also why the 2006 version of Fate/stay night was the most likely to infect viewers with "King poison" and turn them into King fans.

However, the 2006 version of Fate/stay night had many problems as well, the most important being its shoestring production and lack of depth.

He could solve the budget issue. Vacation was coming soon, and if funding really fell short, he could always beat up Cursed Spirits to raise money. The lack of depth was more troublesome.

Although, with the wild ideas and suggestions of countless netizens from his previous life, he had made this life's Fate/stay night more complete, the main storyline of the 2006 version was too short and did not leave enough room to expand.

The UBW route could make up for that perfectly. Its plot had considerable depth, but it could not match the 2006 Fate/stay night in dreaminess or memorability.

If the two could be stitched together, they should complement each other well.

The two then began studying the new plan.

For instance, how could they use a brief amount of runtime in the anime to introduce the story of Caster Mother and Teacher Kuzuki, achieving something concise, crisp, and moving within limited space?

Every cent had to be spent where it mattered. Every character needed at least one beautiful highlight shot, and they absolutely could not cut the budget for fight scenes.

Eiji had seen plenty of people in his previous life who got hooked on and watched an entire anime because of a single scene or an incredible fight sequence.

Finally, Eiji confirmed the progress of the opening and ending songs. Once he was certain there were no issues, he left Heroic Spirit Pictures.

His next stop was the Eastern Folklore Research Institute.