Chapter 296: Shinji: Do You Remember What I Went Through During the HF Release?
In some parallel worlds, Hinako Akuta might come off as a recluse, unfamiliar with the ways of modern society.
But definitely not in this one.
Thanks to her long career as a flight attendant, Hinako was no stranger to human interaction. Not only was she perfectly familiar with contemporary society, but she also had an encyclopedic knowledge of all the internet memes floating around Chinese social media.
Sure, she might not know who the heck Yuno Gasai or the others Shinji was referring to were, but she did immediately pick up on the distinct flavor of Zhu Shimao in his words.
What, did this bratty little kid think she was Chen Peisi?
Was he pulling some kind of "Wu Dalang drinking milk — working too hard for someone so short" skit!?
"Shinji Matou! You think I'm some monkey for your circus!?" she snapped, eyes full of barely suppressed fury.
"..."
Shinji glanced down at the handprint still visible on the table, then at his own scrawny arms and legs, and decided very quickly to fold.
"I was just joking! I figured if I used some local humor, you'd feel more at home faster!" he said, immediately going into damage control.
"Heh~"
The contempt in Hinako's eyes said it all.
There was really nothing Shinji could do at this point except lower his head in apology and sincerely plead for her—no, this beautiful young lady, not grandma at all—to consider playing the role of Fujino Asagami.
To Shinji's surprise, Hinako accepted his groveling fairly generously. She declared that she was willing to forgive his rudeness this time and would do her best to portray the character with care.
And so, what could've easily escalated into a True Ancestor rampage... was peacefully resolved—for now.
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"Boss, I don't quite understand," Ophelia asked once Hinako left. "Wouldn't Miss Sakura be more suited for a yandere-type role like Fujino's? Why insist on her?"
Shinji let out a hollow laugh that sounded like something straight out of a Stephen Chow movie.
"Hahaha… Ophelia, do you remember how many beatings I took during the Heaven's Feel release window?"
"…I understand now."
She dropped the question instantly.
Leaning on his elbows like some mix between Gendo Ikari and a man clinging to life, Shinji said solemnly, "I know how Hinako is. She's the type who only takes things seriously if she likes doing it. From now on, I want everyone to treat her like royalty. Make her feel like she's truly at home here in Fuyuki."
Archer couldn't resist poking fun: "Shinji, do you mean that literally? Or should we put quotation marks around 'at home'?"
"Of course I mean it literally! You think I have a death wish!?" Shinji shot back, rolling his eyes.
"I'll be off to Italy soon for the Venice Film Festival," he added. "So while I'm gone, make sure she's having fun. She's our most important new client right now."
Ophelia muttered under her breath, "Boss, you were messing with her so hard, I couldn't even tell if you were being serious."
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Even with Shinji's departure, the The Garden of Sinners project didn't grind to a halt.
Training continued for the actors already cast, with Li Shuwen overseeing their performance development. Archer worked closely with Touko to finalize the props and magical items that would appear in the movie. The location scouting team roamed across Japan to find settings that matched the haunting elegance of The Garden of Sinners. Auditions for remaining roles were underway at full speed. Even the minor staffers, those who were usually sidelined, made themselves useful—some of them were tasked with sticking to Hinako's side and keeping her entertained.
So when Cloris—representative of the Time Group—once again arrived in Fuyuki, she was rather helpless to find that everyone was busy.
As the lead from Time Group in charge of following up on the The Garden of Sinners series, Cloris had always been optimistic about the project's future. But after reviewing several of Shinji's new story outlines, she came to a sudden and critical realization:
This wasn't just a one-off film.
This could easily develop into a long-running cinematic franchise.
And what did that mean?
It meant more than just a trilogy.
And for a film company, that could only mean one thing.
A gold mine of unlimited potential.
Ever since she realized just how big this project could become, Cloris had been working tirelessly to convince the higher-ups at Time Group to go all-in on Shinji's new film series.
That was the only reason Time Group had been willing to fork over tens of millions in funding for the The Garden of Sinners project.
Not that the money actually came from their own pockets—naturally, it was pulled from the company's distribution investment pool.)
Everyone in the industry knew the golden rule:
Never use your own money to make movies.
Cloris had succeeded in persuading the execs, but she still felt a gnawing discomfort in her gut.
Instead of fully acquiring the The Garden of Sinners project like she'd hoped, Time Group had decided to co-develop it with Type-Moon.
"What the hell are they thinking?" she muttered under her breath.
"This is exactly the kind of investment that multiplies tenfold once it hits—why are they being so stingy? Don't they realize every dollar they give up now is millions lost later?"
Back when The Garden of Sinners wasn't being taken seriously, Shinji had planned to outsource the entire production—treating himself like the J.K. Rowling of the project. Just write the story, take a side cut, and be done with it.
That attitude had been a major reason why the execs at Time Group had been so skeptical in the first place.
If the project was really that great, they'd ask, why wasn't Shinji Matou putting his own skin in the game?
But Cloris didn't see it that way.
She believed it was exactly because of their cowardly indecision that Shinji had taken the reins back and reclaimed control of The Garden of Sinners.
"Bunch of useless parasites," Cloris muttered.
"Now we're stuck earning commission for Shinji again."
She knew very well that once time passed and the project hit theaters, the commercial value of The Garden of Sinners would only become more obvious.
And knowing Shinji's bottomless appetite, as seen with Fate, she could already see how this was going to go:
Shinji eats the meat. Time Group sips the soup.
Of course, "sipping soup" was a bit of an exaggeration. As the distributor, Time Group did get the lion's share of the profits.
But if you looked at it from an investment-return ratio?
Shinji was making money way too easily.
Especially after Cloris heard the fatal piece of news—Shinji was planning to direct the first The Garden of Sinners film himself.
At that moment, she knew things had gone south.
"Shinji is holding a grudge," she whispered.
"He saw we weren't taking this seriously, so now he's turning the whole thing into a juggernaut just to make us jealous. Ugh, his petty streak hasn't changed at all!"
As for the possibility of The Garden of Sinners flopping?
Cloris didn't even consider it.
Sure, if Time Group had taken charge of the project, there was a real risk of failure. But with Shinji Matou himself stepping in?
There was only one outcome: Success.
And once that happened, the full steering wheel of the The Garden of Sinners franchise would end up in Shinji's hands. Completely.
Despite being personally fond of Shinji, Cloris still wanted Time Group to toughen up as a business partner.
From Fate/Stay Night to now, Time Group had been trailing behind Shinji's footsteps, reaping passive profits without ever managing a major successful project on their own.
This wasn't a healthy sign.
A proper collaboration should be sweet and romantic—like Romeo and Juliet.
But what they had now?
It was more like Romeo and… Kublai Khan.
If this kept up, Time Group would end up nothing more than a soulless cash dispenser and distribution machine under Type-Moon's heel.
So even with the risks involved, Cloris wanted Time Group to take full ownership of the The Garden of Sinners project.
After all, if you had to gamble, you might as well bet on a Shinji project—it had far better odds than any random black box proposal.
"Unless we take over everything right from the pre-production phase…"
Cloris clenched her fist as that thought solidified in her mind.
Unfortunately, Time Group's board of directors ultimately rejected Cloris's proposal.
Once again, they chose to lie down and do nothing.
"But what if Shinji pulls it off again? Then he'll be in control of the project—again!" Cloris asked, exasperated.
"It's fine," one of the execs replied calmly. "As long as we earn enough from the project, spending a little more is worth it. We're Time Group—we can afford it."
"..."
Cloris was speechless.
They were really planning to just sit there and wait for the money to be spoon-fed into their mouths.
To be fair, it wasn't that the Time Group execs were idiots—just that, like most big corporations, they preferred to play it safe.
As long as Shinji Matou kept delivering results, why not just ride his coattails?
Maybe the old men at Time Group thought Shinji was just a mischievous little Monkey King—one that could never escape the palm of their Great Buddha's hand.
But Cloris didn't see it that way.
To her, Shinji was more like Sima Yi—a patient, cunning beast waiting for his moment to strike.
"Tch— fine. Why should I care anymore?"
If the higher-ups were going to lie down, then Cloris figured she might as well do the same.
And honestly, if Shinji did take over Time Group one day, it wouldn't necessarily be a bad thing—for either Cloris or the Flora family.
"Who knows? Maybe once he's climbed on top of my head, he'll finally come to his senses and marry me."
Miss Lissy's imagination was officially running wild—like Kayneth driving a convertible with the top down: wide open brain mode.
Still, she was in a surprisingly good mood.
With her focus shifting away from corporate politics, she finally started turning her full attention to the The Garden of Sinners project itself.
From her early conversations with Shinji, Cloris had come to believe that he wasn't trying to turn The Garden of Sinners into another Fate-tier juggernaut.
More likely, he just wanted to make a little side income—and, of course, butter up that foxy assistant of his, Ryougi Shiki.
"Tch. Damn lovestruck idiot…"
Just thinking about it filled Cloris with smoky black rage.
Sure, a boss giving his lover the lead role wasn't exactly unheard of.
But personally starting a new project, AND going out of his way to ask his backer for money to fund the film?
There was probably only one man in the world who could pull off something that insane—Shinji Matou himself.
Thankfully, Shinji hadn't taken The Garden of Sinners too seriously at first. He showed zero interest in tying himself down to it the same way he had with Fate.
If he had decided to personally take charge of the entire project, Cloris might've been tempted to storm into Fuyuki with a knife to "handle" that kitsune homewrecker once and for all.
"Well, since Shinji didn't volunteer to direct this time, I suppose I'll forgive him for now."
"Nice and easy, right? All I have to do is wait for Shinji to perform another miracle."
As for how much less money Time Group would make if The Garden of Sinners hit it big again?
Cloris couldn't be bothered to think about it anymore.
"It's not like the profits go straight into my account anyway."
With a shrug, she gave up on the spreadsheets and started mentally scheming how to get a firmer grip on Shinji.
Even if Shinji had only become the director of The Garden of Sinners under pressure, there was no way she was going to let him off the hook easily.
"I've got to remind him who really—wait, who the hell are you!?"
Just as she was in the middle of her internal monologue, Cloris froze.
Standing before her was a twin-tailed girl straight out of a light novel—one she'd never seen before in her life.
Cloris's brain went full Sparta mode.