Episode 6 of 'Fate/Zero' scored a viewership rating of 9.54%. In the days following its broadcast, the average paid views across the three major streaming platforms were approaching 15 million.
After this episode aired, the online feedback for 'Fate/Zero' also saw a noticeable improvement.
While most viewers still preferred Artoria, a growing number found themselves becoming fans of Iskandar.
Though it was just a dramatized debate between "kings" in a TV show, the immersion was so deep for some viewers that they started imagining Alexander the Great of Jing Yu's fictional Blue Star world as if he were a real historical figure.
The Fate series has always been polarizing—people either love it deeply or feel absolutely nothing. And even within the fandom, reactions vary depending on which installment you're talking about.
Take Jing Yu, for example. He personally loved 'Fate/Zero', but didn't find the storyline of 'Fate/stay night' nearly as compelling.
To be fair, Artoria was well-developed in both FZ and FSN. But when it came to the rest of the cast, Jing Yu felt that FZ delivered a far more emotionally resonant experience.
By mid-February, the VFX company had finally finished all post-production work for 'Fate/Zero', even earlier than Jing Yu had expected. Likely, they didn't dare slack off, fearing a misstep on such a high-profile hit.
"If we ever get a chance to work together again, Mr. Jing Yu, please don't forget about us."
The lead staff from the effects company had a farewell meal with Jing Yu before leaving. The table was full of laughter and casual chatter.
"Of course. And honestly, the next collaboration may come sooner than you think," Jing Yu replied.
The VFX staff exchanged glances, their expressions instantly serious.
Having worked with Jing Yu for this long, they understood his personality well.
If Jing Yu said he might have an idea… it meant he'd already thought everything through—down to the exact number of screws needed.
Artoria's character design, Gilgamesh's effects, the styling of Excalibur, its light effects, and how Excalibur's ultimate attack should be presented...
Rather than saying they helped create the effects, it was more accurate to say they were executing Jing Yu's preplanned vision.
They had no room for creative liberty. And what frustrated them even more was that the final result ended up better than anything they could have designed on their own.
The Next Day
Jing Yu arrived at his office early in the morning, holding two new scripts he'd just completed that week.
"'Legal High!' and 'Natsume's Book of Friends'? Already?"
"You're unbelievably fast. I only mentioned this a week ago, and now you've got two scripts ready?"
Even though Cheng Lie had long grown used to Jing Yu's superhuman speed, this still surprised him.
"Well, my break wasn't totally unproductive," Jing Yu casually brushed it off.
Cheng Lie started flipping through the new drafts.
So far, Jing Yu had only written the first few episodes. But the genres...
Supernatural yokai stories? Legal drama?
"Hold on—don't tell me you also understand law now?" Cheng Lie stared at him like he was some kind of alien.
The saying "art comes from life" truly applies to Jing Yu.
He directed a Go drama—and turned out to be an expert player. He made martial arts dramas—yet the on-set stunt directors never dared question him. They just kept telling the crew how dangerous his stunts were, urging them to have medics on standby. But not once had anything gone wrong.
And now? A legal drama?
In truth, Jing Yu would've preferred to focus on epic fantasy and action titles.
Like 'Fullmetal Alchemist' or 'Attack on Titan'. As a seasoned otaku, he had a deep emotional bond with hot-blooded battle shounen.
But, as always, VFX takes time. You can't decide to film 'Gundam' today and expect the effects team to integrate everything by next week. That's just not possible.
And with so many staff depending on the studio, Jing Yu could afford to keep paying salaries—but there was no point in letting them sit idle. A company doesn't run that way.
Anime-style stories, as popular in his past life, could roughly be divided into several categories:
Slice of life/school life
Youth romance
Fantasy action
Sports
School romance stories, for instance, didn't adapt well to live-action. The plots were too subtle and slow.
Take 'Daily Lives of High School Boys' or 'Haven't You Heard? I'm Sakamoto'—fun to watch in anime form, but turned weird in live-action.
As for romance dramas, Jing Yu had already made too many. He was tired of them himself.
Sports dramas? He'd considered doing something like Slam Dunk—but the length and scope made it hard to adapt. After all, the "National Tournament" arc doesn't exist in Great Zhou.
That said, since he had already built a "fictional" world in 'Fate/Zero'—Blue Star—he could mirror those settings in future adaptations.
Still, he decided to put the sports series on hold for now. They're thrilling in anime, but in live-action?
Not so much.
Viewers today grew up watching real top-level athletes on TV. Even if you showed them an NBA game from his past life, they'd probably scoff and say: "Bunch of scrubs."
So, a high school-level basketball match? No way the audience would find it exciting.
Unless he planned to go the 'Buzzer Beater' or exaggerated 'Dear Boys' route with flashy effects. But that would get awkward. Balancing realism and style in sports anime adaptations was notoriously difficult.
As for 'Natsume's Book of Friends'—that was a series Jing Yu had thought about for a long time before finally deciding on it.
Why?
For one, it was long enough to keep a full team of staff busy.
The reason he hadn't touched it before was that it was an episodic, standalone story format. That made it unsuitable for TV broadcasts, since standalone episodes don't build suspense and aren't great for boosting ratings.
But for online streaming?
Totally different story.
And since his contract with Qingyun Video still required one more exclusive series, this one would be the perfect fit.
Short-format, episodic, long enough in length, and with the right commercial potential—especially with yokai merchandise. Jing Yu saw a strong market there.
As for special effects?
Most of the yokai wouldn't need much—maybe just a bit of makeup. Only Nyanko-sensei might need a little extra VFX.
At its core, this was a pure, story-driven series.
As for 'Legal High!' — it was Jing Yu's way of breaking new ground.
Most of the works he was familiar with came from Japanese anime and drama. While he had adapted plenty of anime, this would be his first time tackling a J-drama. [T/N: Didn't he already give out 'Dragon Zakura']
Though some people thought there wasn't much difference between Japanese dramas and anime, the truth was: they were very different.
J-dramas rarely featured school romance. Most leaned toward workplace relationships and were grounded in realism.
In anime, courtroom dramas like 'Legal High!' were nearly nonexistent.
But make no mistake: this was a stellar series.
Compared to something like 'Fate/Zero' or 'Trust & Betrayal', the biggest difference would be commercial viability.
A drama like 'Legal High!' might draw good ratings and strong critical acclaim—but it wouldn't generate nearly as much profit as 'Fate/Zero'. That was a given.
Still, as long as it didn't lose money, Jing Yu was satisfied. Otherwise, his team would have nothing to do—and that'd be even worse. Leave them idle too long, and they'd get lazy.
"So it's decided. These two dramas," Jing Yu said.
"Didn't you say you wanted to create more effects-heavy shows?" Cheng Lie asked.
"That's right. Apart from these two, there'll be another show entering pre-production soon. But its production cycle will be like 'Fate/Zero'—at least six months."
So…
At least three dramas?
Cheng Lie's heart skipped a beat.
Jing Yu either did nothing or came in swinging with a full-blown strategic rollout.