Chapter 292: A Press Conference is Made for Making Headlines
In the training room, as soon as she saw Shinji walk in, Shiki greeted him with a smile.
Shinji casually waved back, acknowledging her presence without interrupting her training.
He waited until she finished her current set of movements before stepping forward to talk.
"Oh my, Shinji-kun. And Ophelia, you both came to see me?"
Shiki beamed playfully, the serene beauty she had exuded during practice now replaced by a lively, mischievous girl. It was almost hard to believe it was the same person.
"Wow Shiki-nee, you've really gotten the hang of this fast," Shinji said with a teasing grin. "So this is what happens when you ditch work to train hard in secret"
"Hey! I have been doing my assistant work properly!" Shiki puffed up her cheeks in protest. "How could I possibly ignore a job that pays me two salaries?"
She placed her hands on her hips, putting on a mock-angry face.
"I'm living alone in Fuyuki City now, you know? I'm broke!"
Of course, that was an outright lie. There was no way the daughter of the prestigious Ryougi family was actually poor.
In reality, Shiki's monthly allowance from home far exceeded her actual wages.
The only reason she hadn't quit her assistant job was because of her father's very persistent orders:
Stay by Shinji Matou's side, no matter what.
It was painfully obvious that Mr. Ryougi still hadn't given up on the idea of matchmaking.
Unfortunately for him, Shinji saw Shiki as little more than a backup plan—one with a very low priority at that.
Not because Shinji looked down on her, of course. It was just that marrying Shiki felt too much like settling down with someone like Cloris.
And with so many beautiful Heroic Spirits around, why would he tie himself to one tree before climbing every mountain?
So, Shinji didn't bother following that line of conversation and smoothly changed the topic to the movie.
"Before we start filming, you have to bring your swordsmanship up to standard. Otherwise, you'll be dropped from the role."
Shiki's blade work was key to the action scenes in The Garden of Sinners. It was one of the film's major selling points.
But in this world, the elegant Miss Ryougi was a true 24-karat rich girl—completely inexperienced in combat, with no exposure to martial arts or murder techniques before training began.
She was literally starting from zero.
If she truly failed to meet Shinji's expectations, he wouldn't hesitate to replace her with a female Japanese Servant and let her take over as the lead actress.
That was his last-resort option—but also the stick he dangled for motivation.
As long as Shiki's training results were passable, Shinji wouldn't replace her.
Worst case, they could just have a Servant act as her stunt double during intense fight scenes.
All Shiki had to do was strike a few cool poses for the finishing shots.
Shiki, oblivious to what Shinji was thinking, still believed her presence in The Garden of Sinners was more or less optional.
"Shinji-kun, the training period's only for this short time, right?"
She looked up at him with a hopeful expression. "It's a bit rushed, isn't it? Can't we stretch it out a little longer? I mean… the script isn't even finished yet, is it?"
Unlike Cu Chulainn, this was Shiki's first time working with Shinji on a film.
She had absolutely no idea just how monstrous her "boss" could be when it came to filmmaking.
"The script? That's already been decided long ago," Shinji said with a tilted smile. "The Garden of Sinners is planned as a series. I've written scripts for several major story arcs already—right now it's just a matter of picking which one should be the first installment."
"I see..."
Shiki's reaction was a mix of joy and unease.
She was glad to hear that The Garden of Sinners wasn't just one of Shinji's whims—that he had real ambitions for it.
But at the same time, that meant if she didn't improve fast, there was a very real chance of being cut from the project entirely.
'There's no way I'm letting that happen!'
Suddenly hit with a wave of urgency, Shiki stopped chatting and immediately ran off to start another round of training with her instructor.
"She really wants to be an actress, doesn't she?"
Ophelia couldn't help but comment as she watched Shiki train hard, sweat flying with every swing of the blade.
"Boss, toying with a maiden's heart is a serious offense, you know~"
She gave Shinji a sideways glance, her tone playful but not without meaning.
Of course, as someone who had been with Shinji long enough to know all his tricks, Ophelia was well aware that he never actually planned to replace Shiki as the lead.
"It's all to keep her motivated," Shinji replied without a hint of remorse. "There's a lot of pressure in showbiz. If she can't handle even this much, then she has no place in the industry."
Ophelia sighed and shook her head. "In the end, whatever the boss says is always right."
Shinji chuckled and lightly patted her on the thigh—a little too comfortably, as always.
"Come on, seeing Shiki work so hard, doesn't it make you want to try acting too? If you're interested, I could write you your own script~"
"Hard pass," Ophelia answered without hesitation. "Just being your secretary is already exhausting enough. Please don't add to my workload."
"Haha~"
Then, as if remembering something, Ophelia asked, "By the way, Boss, have you decided which story to start filming yet? The Time Group is going to need a finalized proposal soon."
"Hm... I'm still debating..."
Just as Shinji was deep in thought, his phone suddenly rang.
The call was coming in through his work line from an unknown number.
By all logic, this was probably just another scam attempt—a 70% chance at least.
But for some reason, Shinji didn't hang up. He answered politely.
"Hello? Who's speaking?"
The voice on the other end brought a smile of genuine satisfaction to his face.
Ophelia, watching closely, noticed his expression and pursed her lips slightly.
She couldn't hear the exact words, but she could tell the caller was a woman.
"I see. Alright—I'll be waiting for you in Fuyuki," Shinji said with a chuckle before hanging up.
"Let me guess… your newest girlfriend?" Ophelia asked with thinly veiled jealousy.
Shinji just shook his phone and grinned.
"Nope. An old colleague of yours."
"…Huh?"
Ophelia blinked in confusion, a huge question mark practically floating above her head.
Shinji burst out laughing and gave her thigh another hearty pat—she really should've stopped standing within reach.
"Let's go," he said. "The first The Garden of Sinners story is officially decided."
◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆
A few days later, Shinji stood at the podium of a press hall inside the Type-Moon Entertainment headquarters.
He was hosting a grand press conference.
The theme? Well… some would call it painting dreams with words.
Ahem, officially, it was a promotional event for several of Type-Moon's upcoming major projects.
Naturally, the first project Shinji mentioned was none other than Ultraseven X, which was set to make its debut at the upcoming Venice Film Festival.
Even though Tsuburaya Productions and Type-Moon were technically two separate companies on paper, it wasn't strange for Cu Chulainn, the leading actor of Ultraseven X, to be promoted at a Type-Moon press conference. After all, he was one of their own.
"This time, Ultraseven X will be a completely different kind of Ultraman story," Shinji said confidently before the crowd of eager reporters.
"The hero Seven may appear no different from the traditional Ultra Warriors, but we've brought him down from his pedestal—we've reimagined him with a more realistic tone."
That was Shinji's thesis for the film. A dark, cyberpunk reimagining of the classic Ultraman mythos. And at its heart?
A portrayal of powerlessness.
"In this movie," Shinji continued, "Seven is no longer a god. He can't fix everything. He's nothing more than a helpless bystander."
"In past incarnations—whether the Showa-era TV shows or the Heisei-era OVAs—Seven always stood above it all, observing the struggles between Earthlings and aliens from a distance. But this time… he will be part of the chaos. A witness. A victim."
"And that experience will be agonizing," Shinji added. "Because the story he goes through isn't beautiful. It isn't hopeful. All he'll find is the raw, cruel reality of human nature."
To enhance immersion, Shinji had deliberately written the story from the perspective of an amnesiac protagonist—someone who would learn the truth of the world alongside the audience, who would struggle, question, and eventually find their own answer.
It was, without question, a bold move.
One that flipped the classic Ultraman formula on its head.
Sure, previous entries in the franchise had claimed "Ultramen aren't gods," but actions always spoke louder than words. And in the end, the Ultra Warriors were divine figures—beings who could end conflicts, solve crises, and make decisions for humanity.
But Ultraseven X?
It was the first and only Ultraman work where the Ultra Warrior failed.
Where no happy ending awaited.
Compared to famously dark series like Nexus or Leo, Ultraseven X made them look tame.
This wasn't just an adult-oriented story—it was a film children shouldn't watch.
In the original draft of Ultraseven X, even when the real Seven appeared and destroyed the enemy, peace never returned. The world continued to spiral into chaos, plunging further into despair.
No light. No salvation. Just endless conflict.
It wasn't just a "bad ending."
It was unprecedented.
To Shinji—an unrepentant tokusatsu fanatic—Ultraseven X was a masterpiece that deserved discussion, reverence even.
It was just a shame that in his previous life, Tsuburaya had never done it justice.
Mismanagement, compromises, and external pressure had crushed its potential.
But not this time.
'Heh~ now that I'm involved, I'll make sure the story is told the way it was meant to be.'
Shinji fully understood Ultraseven X's commercial risks.
He knew a film this grim had little hope at the box office.
But he wasn't making it for money.
He was making it to leave a mark on cinema history.
And once he'd finished hyping up Ultraseven X, he moved on to the next big reveal of the day:
Type-Moon's first-ever idol group—The Round Table Trio!
Er, wait... he meant...
[The Three Knights of the Round Table]!
(Though let's be honest, fans were already calling them the Round Table Dumbasses online.)
Their idol debut was a major move for Type-Moon's talent agency division, and Shinji wasn't going to miss the chance to shout it to the world.
He would make sure everyone saw the charm of Gawain, Tristan, and Lancelot.
"Let's welcome the team's three members to the stage!"
At Shinji's enthusiastic introduction, the three knights of the Round Table appeared before the press—for the very first time—as full-fledged idols.
<+>
If you want to see more chapter of this story and don't mind paying $5 each month to read till the latest posted chapter, please go to my Patreon[1]
Current Chapter In Patreon: Chapter 335: Taiga Fujimura's Nighttime Adventure[2]
Link to the latest chapter: https://www.patreon.com/posts/141555111?collection=31097[3]
https://www.patreon.com/collection/31097?view=expanded[4]
[1] https://www.patreon.com/collection/31097?view=expanded
[2] https://www.patreon.com/posts/141555111?collection=31097
[3] https://www.patreon.com/posts/141555111?collection=31097
[4] https://www.patreon.com/collection/31097?view=expanded