Chapter 48

Chapter 48: “Akina, Akemi, Mom Will Keep This Compensation for You First”

In the evening, the Nakamori family gathered in the living room.

“WHAT?! 3 million yen?” Nakamori Akio doubted his ears. “Akina, Akemi, you didn’t get tricked into doing something illegal, did you?”

At this point in time, the Nakamori family had not yet fallen into the money-driven trap that would later come with Akina’s fame. They had occasional conflicts, but remained a united family overall.

Hearing such a large payment, Akio’s first thought was that the girls might have been dragged into some shady affair.

“What do you mean illegal things! Our Akina and Akemi would never do that.” Chieko shot Akio a glare. “It seems like something about a design drawing.”

Akina herself was also confused at first, but then reacted.

“Is it the design for that hair accessory?”

Her older siblings were curious too. “What hair accessory?”

Akemi immediately ran to her room and brought out two cat-ear headbands.

“This.”

Akio looked at the black and white cat ears.

“A design for this? This makes that much money?”

The eldest brother, Akihiro, clearly recognized it.

“Wait… this is the CATS cat ears!!!”

He grabbed them and looked closer, then suddenly shouted.

“These are serial numbers 001 and 002!”

“The very first batch of CATS cat ears! Limited among limited! The first hundred are basically legendary!”

He was clearly a fan.

“Akina! Akemi!! Don’t tell me these were designed by you?!!”

“Eh? Is CATS that famous?”

CATS had only appeared once on Night Hit, and most of its other appearances were in late-night programs. Their promotion had shifted toward live houses and discos, and most of their fans were adults.

Akihiro was trembling as he held the cat ears, breathing heavily, his face flushed.

“Akina… Akemi… these cat ears…”

The sisters immediately understood his intentions and snatched them back.

“Baka niisan, don’t even think about it!”

Akihiro let out a defeated wail.

“That’s 001 and 002!! Oono Miho is only 003!!!”

The family laughed at him.

The eldest sister, Akie, spoke.

“Looks like this accessory really is popular. The payment seems real.”

Chieko still looked uneasy.

“They also mentioned needing a contract… to avoid disputes.”

Akio nodded.

“If someone is paying the money, then it’s fine. Contracts are probably just for formalities.”

Akina said quietly.

“Naoki-san seems like a sincere person. And the idea was his. Akemi and I just drew what he described.”

Chieko relaxed slightly.

“Who would freely give away 3 million yen… and no one even knows you were involved.”

“Maybe for rich people, 3 million is nothing.”

Akemi added.

“Naoki-san really seems rich. He spends money very freely.”

Akie also remembered.

“He didn’t even ask for the photo development money last time.”

In the entertainment industry, profits usually went to agencies, while lower-level performers struggled.

Some even survived by abusing travel reimbursements from agencies.

If Naoki were a normal commercial talent, he would only be earning around 100,000 yen a month.

Fortunately, his projects were structured as partnerships with profit sharing, otherwise he would never have raised nearly 200 million yen in funding.

—

Saturday morning.

Nagayama Naoki arrived early at Kiyose Town.

The Nakamori family lived in this small town on the far edge of Tokyo, not far past Kiyose Station.

The drive took less than an hour.

A convertible sports car naturally drew attention in Tokyo—but in a small town, even more so. Children stared as he parked beside the house and stepped out with a fruit basket.

Pressing the doorbell, he was greeted by an older woman.

“Nice to meet you, Mrs. Nakamori. I’m Nagayama Naoki, here for the appointment.”

Chieko accepted the fruit basket.

“I’ve heard your name more than once.”

After exchanging greetings, he was led into the house.

Inside the tatami room, seven pairs of eyes turned toward him at once.

Naoki froze slightly.

“Ah… good morning everyone.”

Chieko quickly introduced everyone: Akio, Akihiro, and others.

They all sat around the low table.

Akio spoke first.

“So, about what my wife mentioned… this matter involving Akina and Akemi—could you explain it in detail?”

Naoki explained calmly.

He had noticed Akina’s drawing ability, asked her and her sister to help visualize a design, and later the product unexpectedly became popular and attracted manufacturers.

He added that the initial payment had been far too small, and now he wanted to formally compensate them.

Akio listened carefully, then asked.

“Why now? And why a contract?”

Naoki replied that the cat-ear headband had already been registered as a design patent, and although there were no legal issues, the original drawings still came from the girls.

CATS was growing quickly, and the accessory was tightly linked to its image. A formal contract was needed to prevent future disputes or reputational damage.

In reality, he simply did not want to take advantage of the girls.

Chieko asked directly.

“Is it true they will receive 3 million yen?”

“Yes. Six companies have already paid licensing fees, totaling about 6 million yen. I plan to split it evenly between both of them.”

“If you are uncomfortable, we can adjust the terms.”

“However, there will be no future royalties. That is a company condition.”

Chieko shook her hands.

“No, it’s not that we’re unhappy…”

Once everything was explained, things proceeded smoothly.

A sample contract was signed, parents signed as guardians, and the girls received sealed envelopes containing the payment.

Naoki stood up.

“Thank you for your time. I should get going.”

After he left, the family remained seated for a moment before the atmosphere loosened again.

Akihiro looked at the car disappearing outside.

“He’s definitely rich… what does he even do?”

Akina answered.

“He’s a commercial model… and also wrote a popular song.”

Akemi added.

“He might be a producer in the music industry.”

Akio concluded.

“Anyway, he’s wealthy. People like that don’t argue over payments.”

Chieko then said calmly:

“Akina, Akemi, I’ll keep this compensation for now.”

“Eh?!” x2

The two girls froze.

Chieko added:

“You can get it when you need it later.”

“Your allowance will be doubled.”

Silence.