Someday in the not-too-distant future, this small toy company would be situated right on this bustling street.
In Academy City, it would fight tooth and nail against countless competitors in the toy industry for every bit of the students' pocket money, engaging in a brutal, no-holds-barred struggle.
However, unlike slightly more child-oriented characters like Gekota and Pyonko, the Daidouji Group's Magical Powered Kanamin had broken through the age barrier, massively infiltrating the middle school and high school demographics. She undoubtedly had much broader prospects.
Gazing up at the towering building, Natsume-san felt a strange sense of mission well up inside her.
Magical Powered Kanamin was destined to create a new wave in Academy City, supplanting the aging Gekota empire and other miscellaneous toy brands.
Furthermore, potential users like Index made Natsume Sonoko realize that their group could relatively easily tap into the blue ocean market of the magic-side populace within Academy City. Yet another piece of good news.
Setting aside her inexplicable surge of ambition, Natsume-san looked at the building before her with mild curiosity, then found the elevator leading directly to the top floor in the entrance hall.
The building was already empty, with almost no staff in sight. Even the original office facilities had been cleared out, leaving behind vast, vacant spaces. It seemed the other party had long been prepared to sell, rather than making a snap decision.
But for Miss Tomoyo-san, this was probably a good thing. After all, no one likes using second-hand items, and it would save her the cost of waste disposal.
"You're here, Sonoko-chan. The view here is quite nice, isn't it?"
As the elevator doors slid open, Natsume-san spotted her mother's figure immediately.
Miss Tomoyo, dressed in professional attire, was very different from yesterday. While her gentle demeanor remained, there was a new air of efficiency about her.
She waved lightly to someone, the happiness in her tone impossible to conceal.
"It's lovely."
Stepping out of the elevator quietly, the person hesitated for a moment before murmuring in agreement.
But a trace of nervousness immediately flashed across her face. Natsume Sonoko subtly shifted her right hand behind her back. She'd nearly forgotten something very important, and now it was a bit too late to remember.
She hadn't explained her injury to her mother yet.
"Sonoko, how did you end up like this?"
Miss Tomoyo's expression changed instantly. She rushed to the bun-headed girl's side in a few quick steps, carefully inspecting the heavily bandaged arm.
"The doctor said it's good for the skin, there's really no major injury. I wanted to refuse, but I figured since I was already there, and the doctor was so insistent... I just agreed."
Her tone became slightly sheepish as Natsume Sonoko explained quite honestly, faithfully recounting what had happened at the hospital.
"Did your own ability do this?"
"Mhm, it was just an accident."
Natsume-san obediently continued nodding, like an unfeeling nodding machine.
The transparent glass walls let in the soft sunlight, while also reflecting a significant amount of light pollution.
In a corner of the top floor, a well-behaved young girl sat on the sole remaining sofa. Before her steamed a disposable cup of tea—she'd used her ability to brew it for herself out of boredom.
However, her eyes kept darting towards the lady on the phone not far away, and she sighed helplessly, beginning to space out.
When it came to large transactions involving units of hundreds of millions, it was naturally impossible to hash everything out casually in one morning. In fact, her mother had only reached a preliminary purchase agreement with the other party.
Lawyers and various specialists would need to handle the subsequent details, which meant arranging for various personnel from the Daidouji Group to enter Academy City.
Alternatively, they could directly hire specialized companies within Academy City to manage it.
In short, because of this matter, the lady had suddenly become very busy, seemingly intent on sorting out most of the details during the few days of the Daihasei Festival.
"With this sudden workload, I won't be able to spend as much time with you these days, Sonoko. I need to get these matters settled quickly. But, you see, once we secure the company location and I have the status of an official company manager, I can stay in Academy City long-term."
Turning off her phone, Miss Tomoyo lovingly ruffled the girl's bun hair, her voice full of reluctance.
Having managed to get into Academy City during the Daihasei Festival, Miss Tomoyo cherished this opportunity, but in the end, she chose to make the most of these convenient few days.
One of the main components of Academy City was its vast array of commercial companies, large and small.
This was also why about twenty percent of the city's population were adults.
It indirectly indicated that there was a certain, tacitly permitted flow of non-student population between Academy City and the outside world.
In fact, the population of Academy City had been continuously growing. If it weren't for the trust crisis caused by the recent space elevator incident, even more school-age students would have chosen to enter Academy City next year.
"Eh?"
"You really don't need to rush so much."
Natsume-san let out a sound of surprise, clearly picking up on something unusual.
Although Natsume Sonoko also wanted a research institute of her own—it would greatly accelerate her ability development progress—it seemed her mother was even more eager than she was.
This left Natsume-san somewhat puzzled, feeling like something was a bit off.
"It's better to settle some things early. What if the owner here suddenly decides to raise the price back up?"
Coming back to herself, Miss Tomoyo seemed to have made up her mind. She took the bun-headed girl's hand, smiling.
"And since we have time now, it's perfect to make a few outfits for you, Sonoko. I've been thinking about designs since yesterday; all that's missing is you."
"But we don't have any fabric or tools here; we'd need to go back to the hotel first."
Remembering something, Miss Tomoyo's eyes suddenly lit up. She rested her chin on her hand, thinking.
Tokiwadai Middle School had rules about wearing uniforms, but under a certain lady's combination of threats and persuasion, Natsume Sonoko had reluctantly agreed to wear other clothes.
Though, if she could ignore the camera with its constantly-on light nearby, Natsume-san would probably have felt more at ease.
"That's it, now turn once more. You can't keep frowning like that, remember to smile."
Framing the shot with four fingers, Miss Tomoyo paced back and forth enthusiastically, seemingly pondering some finer details.
Then, as if struck by sudden inspiration, she went back to sketching on her design pad. Soon, a gothic-style princess dress appeared before the two of them.
"Just as I thought. Our silly Sonoko really suits the gothic style," the lady declared with certainty.
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T/N: I have a Patreon! While it may seem empty as of now, webnovel will get 3 Chapters Every Day, and advanced chapters will be uploaded on Patreon.
It may not seem worth it now, but maybe in the future. Who knows!
[email protected]/AspenTL
If you guys wanna check it out.