Metamorphosis

A so-called genius should be an existence that reaches the peak upon debut, regarding all trials and tribulations as nothing more than dust to be crushed beneath their feet.

Even if one must shed the title of genius, it should be after challenging oneself and achieving success in one’s career.

At the very least, it shouldn’t be like her current state—being berated so harshly by a Sound Director she collaborated with for the first time, in a way that left her no room for rebuttal.

After reading the entire email, Kazakami Ritsu lowered her phone with an expressionless face.

The matcha flavor, originally a mix of bitter and sweet, now tasted only of intense bitterness in her mouth.

Sano Nana, standing to the side, seemed to sense something and looked at her with a face full of worry.

“Kazakami… is something wrong?”

After speeding up to finish the ice cream, Kazakami Ritsu calmly tossed the wrapper into a roadside trash can.

“It’s nothing. I just failed the audition and got chewed out by the Sound Director, that’s all.”

“Eh? Kazakami, you… you actually got scolded by the Sound Director?!”

Kazakami Ritsu, who had intended to have a proper exchange with Sano Nana, revealed a smile at this moment that would send shivers down anyone’s spine.

“Hey, Sano-san, as a way to comfort me, how about accompanying me for a stroll in the nearby park?”

“Um… sure, let’s go?”

The two followed the flow of people and walked toward a nearby park.

The park here seemed to be a local dating sanctuary; before they even entered, they saw quite a few couples acting lovey-dovey.

After buying tickets at the entrance, Kazakami Ritsu followed the signs to find a quiet bench and sat down, quietly gazing at the ornamental lake in the center of the park.

Sano Nana, sitting next to her, only remained well-behaved for a short while before she started getting restless.

“How did the Sound Director… scold you?”

Hearing her question, Kazakami Ritsu couldn’t help but roll her eyes.

She took out her phone, found the email in her inbox, opened it, and handed it over.

“Here, see for yourself.”

Sano Nana took the phone carefully and began to examine the content on the screen with a serious face.

[Hello Miss Kazakami, I am Hasegawa Rai, the Sound Director responsible for this audition.

Here, I regret to inform you that due to your clumsy performance lacking in professionalism, you have lost the opportunity to voice Lysane this time.

As a voice actor, possessing only a gorgeous but insubstantial vocal timbre and monotonous, fabricated emotions will not help you improve your abilities in the future in the slightest.

After utilizing these two advantages to reach a certain height, you will be trampled underfoot by voice actors who can truly move hearts and resonate with the soul.

You will eventually become a slightly uncomfortable stepping stone on the growth path of a true “genius.”

I hope you wake up soon and invest different emotions according to your role. For those important characters, you can only display the “real” them if you truly empathize with them.

I look forward to our next opportunity to cooperate, and I wish that you may find your own voice of the soul.]

After reading the entire rejection email, Sano Nana fell into a very strange state.

Kazakami Ritsu didn’t disturb her; the two just sat quietly on the park bench.

After a good while, Sano Nana seemed to suddenly snap back to reality and returned the phone to Kazakami Ritsu, the expression on her face still looking somewhat resentful.

“This shouldn’t… really count as being scolded, right?”

“How does it not count? That description of me being a stepping stone on the path of a genius really broke my heart.”

Kazakami Ritsu smiled faintly as her gaze rested in the distance, but there was not a trace of laughter in her eyes.

If that Sound Director Hasegawa hadn’t pointed it out, she wouldn’t have realized she had so many flaws.

In the end, the vast majority of her current performances were merely imitating and acting as a subpar substitute for countless classic scenes.

As long as she could perform thirty percent of the charm of a famous scene, it was basically enough to satisfy most Sound Directors.

Thinking of this, Kazakami Ritsu smiled with a hint of self-mockery.

“Truly troublesome. Since when do geniuses have to work double the effort?”

Although she said this, Kazakami Ritsu still lit up her phone screen and dialed her manager’s number.

Seeing her action, Sano Nana, her mind jumping to some unknown conclusion, panicked and tried to stop her.

“You can’t! Kazakami, you can’t think of running away just because of a little setback!”

“Who said I’m running away! I just want Big Sister Koconoe to not book new work for me recently; I want to polish myself a bit more.”

While the two were fighting over the phone, the call had actually already connected.

On the other end of the phone, Koconoe Tooru, who had just received the audition results and was about to offer some comfort to her artist, heard this dialogue between the two.

‘Not bad, as expected of the child the President has high hopes for.’

With a gratified expression on her face, Koconoe Tooru deliberately coughed twice to remind them that the call was connected.

Sure enough, in the next second, Kazakami Ritsu’s somewhat cool natural voice rang out from the other end.

“Big Sister Koconoe, I would like to ask you not to arrange any new work for me in the near future…”

After reaching a consensus with Kazakami Ritsu, Koconoe Tooru hung up the phone with satisfaction.

She stood up from her workstation and headed straight for the President’s office.

Rimukudo Makoto, who was signing documents behind her desk, listened to Koconoe Tooru’s account, and a satisfied expression appeared on her face as well.

Indeed, although the star-making project in her heart would launch a batch of high-quality voice actors voicing characters customized for them…

That was merely to transition them into idols and achieve better development prospects.

However, what a voice acting agency absolutely could not lack were those pillars who could stand on their own and be etched in people’s memories.

Rimukudo Makoto swiveled her executive chair and looked up at the calligraphy work hanging above her head.

“Accumulate strength for a sudden release… Old man, this time I really discovered a talent that belongs to me.”

She murmured in a low voice, then turned her head and issued instructions to Koconoe Tooru.

“Since that’s the case, let’s grant her wish. But this period can’t be too long; what if she runs out of money and starves to death?”

Listening to the words coming out of the President’s mouth, the expression on Koconoe Tooru’s face became quite colorful.

She really couldn’t understand what exactly was going on inside this young president’s head.

“President, then you mean…”

“Hmm… If she looks for a part-time job, tell me. I’ll arrange it for her.”

After saying this, Rimukudo Makoto once again revealed that smile that made one’s hair stand on end.

Koconoe Tooru trembled; after giving an affirmative response, she stood up and took her leave without hesitation.

After the office door closed again, Rimukudo Makoto picked up her phone, which she had casually tossed aside, and lit up the screen again.

Her fingertips tapped lightly on the screen a few times, and a familiar voice rang out in the office.

“If I lose you, there are people who will be sad because of it…”

“I will absolutely save you! No matter how many times I have to loop, I will definitely protect you!”

After listening to the entire recording, Rimukudo Makoto let out a long breath.

“Hmm, I really look forward to seeing what changes will come to this line if it’s imbued with intense emotion…”