"Are you interested in Akabeko, Onii-chan?"
"Not really, but I am just thinking that many cities often create their own mascots."
"Now that you mention it." Chika fell into a deep silence as she rubbed her chin. "If I am not wrong, in Kumamoto City, there is also a Kumamon, right?"
"Yes, it made a lot of money."
"How much?"
"1.2 billion dollars."
"...." Chika.
With just a single mascot, it could make a lot of money, which made Nifuji wonder why he hadn't thought to make one before. With his "Designer Mastery," it was possible for him to create a design for a mascot, a doll, or something, and with the "Trend Setter" ability, he could make something into a trend, or know what would make a trend, which led him to generate a lot of profits.
More importantly, he happened to be the president of the toy department of his company!
Why shouldn't he try to improve this department rather than letting it rot?
Nifuji was given a chance, and he could do what many people dreamed of, yet instead of being grateful or trying to improve, he just tried to make his job easier and tried to get away from this job.
Yet, what if he failed?
What if the things that he had tried end up in failure?
Wouldn't he be blamed for all of those mistakes?
His plan to cut off and increase efficiency was fine, as he knew that the chance of failure was low, or even non-existent, but if he wanted to develop something, it was impossible that he could succeed in one go, and countless failures might happen to him, so why should he try?
"What are you thinking of, Onii-chan?"
Chika asked as she had her horse sashimi and also the yaki-soba curry, which were the foods that she had never dared to try before, but as she was on the journey, she decided to try them.
"Are those goods?" Nifuji asked as he looked at Chika, who kept eating.
"Well, it's fine."
"Is it?"
"Yup, I was hesitant before, but I am glad that I have tried them."
"Are you hesitating?" Nifuji asked strangely.
"Of course!" Chika quickly nodded. "Do you think it is easy for everyone to eat unfamiliar foods? They aren't as brave as you, Onii-chan!"
'Brave...'
Nifuji felt that this word was ironic, as he knew well that he wasn't brave at all.
Each of his steps was taken carefully, and he had always been careful, scaredy-cats, worry-warts, as he knew well that if he failed in his steps, he would end up in a failure, and by then, he could only be content to live on the common life.
After all, unlike before, no one led him to this path, so he couldn't copy anyone's path, which would definitely lead to success.
This was an uncharted path, something that no one had ever walked upon, which was why he wasn't sure whether his idea would succeed.
"By the way, thank you, Onii-chan."
"Hmmm?"
"If you were not here, I am afraid that I might not be able to take this journey."
"Are you sure?" Nifuji looked at Chika weirdly. "I think that even if I am not by your side, you can take the journey."
"I might be, but I might not be, especially when it is so scary to take a journey alone. If you are not by my side, I will keep thinking of many things, but well... I also think that this journey is like my dream in a manga."
"Is it?"
"Yes." Chika nodded. "I might have won the competition, but all of the drafts that I have created have all ended up being rejected, you know? Even if I have won once, I don't think I can see my future living with my manga alone... I feel like... I need to work even harder, and to live, I might need to have more jobs, so that way, I won't become poor..."
Yes, for her, as Chika had decided to walk on the path of a manga, she felt an intense pressure on her petite body as if it would crush her, especially when she wasn't even sure whether she could live with her manga.
Her dream was nice, and all, yet if her manga couldn't feed her, what should she do?
Somehow, she looked at Nifuji with a forced smile and said, "If I am all failed, then please accept me in your company—"
"No, you will succeed!"
"Huh?"
Nifuji took a deep breath as he said, "Truth to be told, I am also in the same position as you."
"Really?"
"I am about to make the new thing for my plan in my new department, and like you, I am afraid of failure, so I have always taken the safest path, so it won't lead me to failure, but I understand that isn't the way.
"To improve, I need to try, and even if it ends up in a failure, I will keep trying, so let's do our best."
Nifuji looked at Chika with a gentle smile and said, "The two of us are on the same path. As you try to succeed with your manga, I will try to succeed with my plan, so let's do our best."
Yes, like him, Chika was also afraid, yet even so, she continued to strive on.
And, yes, many might say that it was okay for Chika to be positive as she was young, and Nifuji wasn't young anymore, as he was about to become 30, and he was about to reach the age where he had to live in a stable way, yet were there any reasons for him to stop trying?
If a young woman, who wasn't even sure about her talent, dared to face all the challenges, why shouldn't he, who had all the talents and abilities that everyone envied, be afraid of this challenge?
Like his experience with women, as he was quite cowardly in the beginning, he then grew confident, believed that he could handle all types of women who came to him, and now, his job was his new challenge!
It was frightening at first, yet wasn't it natural?
Like Chika, Nifuji had decided to take the first step!
"So, let's do it together."
"Y-Yes!"
As the two made their fist bumps, it felt like all the clouds on their heads disappeared, and then, they enjoyed their trips a lot from trying the specialty foods in the city, trying the onsen, and looking at all the beautiful sceneries around before the night arrived, as they thought of going to the inn.
Yup, as this was an unplanned trip, naturally, they had no reservations, and as this city wasn't a bustling city with a strong economy, it was also natural that when the dark came, it was like they were about to be swallowed by a darkness, but unlike before, they felt like they could do anything, and as expected, as they had this belief, soon, they discovered a good inn!
"Finally, an inn!"
"Let's go in."
"Um!"
There was a chance that the room at the inn was full, and they wouldn't even have a place to stay, but even so, let's just try it.
"Ah, a room? Wait a moment, let me check."
As they waited for a while, the receptionist checked the rooms for a moment before he said, "Ah, yes, there is a room."
"Great!"
"But, there is only one. Is that okay?"
"....." Nifuji and Chika.
Yup, if there weren't any accidents, then it wouldn't be a trip.