The Director Who Came Knocking

"Seiya, Seiya, look! Even the manga artist behind the original I'll Protect You From This Moment On has spoken up.

And he said that the Young Soya you played is exactly his ideal Young Soya!"

Seeing the flood of praise for Seiya online, Yuko looked immensely proud, as though Seiya having such talent was partly her achievement too.

Especially after seeing the original creator personally praise Seiya, she excitedly picked him up and, in her excitement, slobbered all over his face.

"Ah, the rating for I'll Protect You From This Moment On has dropped again. Before my acting career could even take off, it has already died in the womb."

Seiya shoved away Yuko's approaching head with a look of disgust, wiped the saliva from his face, and looked utterly despairing.

This was completely different from what he had expected!

Seiya had originally thought that, with his mature mind, his exceptional physique gained through his shared ability, and his naturally outstanding looks, he could try breaking into the entertainment industry.

At first, he had not even planned on asking for a paycheck. He had only wanted a chance to appear on screen, so more people could discover his "talent."

And in the beginning, things had gone just as he expected. After showing off his talent, he had gained more opportunities from the director and even made the man remember his name.

But what Seiya had never expected was that after the damn movie aired, public opinion would take such a sharp turn!

There was nothing wrong with him giving it his all, but he had gone too hard and now it had backfired.

Director Okawa might have appreciated him before, but with public opinion like this and the movie's rating falling lower and lower, it would be a miracle if the man did not bury him on the spot, let alone support him in the future.

"Looks like the entertainment industry is a dead end. I can only think of some other way to make money.

I wonder if the tennis industry is developed in this world. If I became a professional player, would I make money quickly?

But even if professional tennis players make money, I'm only five years old right now. Given this family's current situation, we obviously can't wait that long..."

"Ring ring ring ring ring—!"

"Hello, yes, this is the Wenren Residence.

Yes, that's right. My name is Wenren Yuko, and I'm Wenren Seiya's guardian. May I ask..."

While Seiya was still muttering to himself, calculating what other ways he could make money quickly besides becoming a child star, the phone at home suddenly rang, and Yuko hurried over to answer it.

"If nothing else works, I'll just send Yuko anonymous emails and give her some inspiration and ideas.

I remember some truck-driver-and-widow themes being pretty popular in my previous life..."

"Who did you just say was going to send me something anonymously?"

Seiya had been so absorbed in his thoughts that he had not noticed Yuko approaching him at some point.

Her curious question startled him on the spot. After confirming that she had not heard him clearly, Seiya finally let out a huge sigh of relief.

He hurriedly waved his hands and laughed. "Nothing. I was just wondering whether, as a famous artist, Yuko ever gets anonymous emails from fans or anything like that?"

"Anonymous emails? I think I really have gotten some before, but the things they sent..."

Upon hearing Seiya's question, Yuko instinctively started to answer. But when she remembered that Seiya was still only a child, she blushed and quickly changed the subject.

"Compared to those unimportant things, little Seiya, I just received some good news.

If you call me Mommy right now and say you'll love Mommy forever, I'll tell you what it is."

Facing the foolish college girl beaming at him, Seiya's young face immediately filled with disgust.

Who knew why a twenty-year-old girl in the prime of her youth thought about being a mother every day? Had she drawn too many doujinshi?

Seiya ignored Yuko's unreasonable demand and walked over to the phone, standing on tiptoe to turn on its call-recording function.

Since Yuko's manga editor often called their home to chase deadlines and explain work matters, while airheaded Yuko often forgot things, their home phone had a call-recording function.

After playing back the recording, Seiya was surprised to discover that the person who had called was actually Director Okawa.

What surprised Seiya even more was that Director Okawa had specifically obtained their contact information through Arima's Mother, and he had called to introduce Seiya to a new role.

Over the phone, Yuko had also asked Director Okawa why. Although Seiya had performed exceptionally in his movie, it was an indisputable fact that he had ruined the movie's reputation.

Neither Yuko nor Seiya understood why Director Okawa would still introduce work to Seiya after he had offended him.

After hearing Yuko's confusion, Director Okawa smiled and explained his reasons over the phone.

There were no real enemies in the entertainment industry—only everlasting interests.

Although this Young Soya, who had gone viral across the internet, had indeed caused the movie's rating to plummet again and again, industry insiders all knew perfectly well that the movie had been a commercial film made to promote young idols.

No matter how terrible its reviews were, it would not have much impact on him as the director.

On the contrary, although the movie was being criticized everywhere this time, its box office numbers and popularity had skyrocketed as well.

Why make movies? It was nothing more than making money. The box office revenue for I'll Protect You From This Moment On had left both the investors and distributors extremely satisfied, and even he, the director, had received a hefty bonus because of it.

And although the male and female leads in the movie were being viciously criticized, they were probably secretly delighted right now.

Before filming this movie, after all, they had merely been minor actors no different from ordinary people, with no popularity whatsoever.

But after the movie came out, their fame had soared dramatically.

As the saying went, notoriety was still fame. Many minor actors did not even get the chance to have people remember their names.

Besides, through this performance, Seiya had already entered the public eye. Everyone knew he was a genuine gem.

Even if Director Okawa did not make a move, sooner or later someone would dig up Seiya's information.

Never underestimate the entertainment industry's ability to find people. Whenever those people spotted someone talented, they were as sharp as sharks smelling blood.

Rather than wait for someone else to come knocking, Director Okawa thought he might as well make a move first.

After all, judging by the current situation, it was only a matter of time before Seiya became famous. If he extended a helping hand now, Seiya would owe him a favor.