In the agreement between Kamiyā Yuu and Uehara Etsuki, the only requirement was for him to obtain first place on the monthly popularity rankings of the illustration section. There were no restrictions on the methods he could use.
Although Kamiyā Yuu had poured tremendous effort and care into the illustration itself, he still had doubts about whether he could truly secure first place in the monthly rankings. To improve his chances, it was necessary for him to publicly reveal his objective and explain why he needed to claim the number-one position in the illustration rankings.
This method was rather "despicable," because he had dragged third-party viewers into the agreement as well.
But who cared?
Creating the animated CG illustration for 'Ashen Paradise' had taken him over a week. Besides hand-drawing it, Kamiyā Yuu also used MAYA 3D software for visual effects processing and enhancement.
The final result did not disappoint him.
A grand and exquisitely detailed world of flowing golden flames spread across the image. A phoenix overflowing with Eastern classical charm floated proudly in the sky, its body formed from streams of golden fire and its eyes forged from crystalline glass-like flames.
When its dark-golden phoenix eyes gazed down upon the earth, it radiated arrogance, majesty, and inviolable dignity.
Yang looked up toward the heavens, revealing half of her face. Still an immature young girl, her expression was filled with confusion and despair-like sorrow. Tears slid down her violet eyes and dripped onto the face of the black-haired little girl she held in her arms.
Blood stained her small, wounded body crimson. Whenever it came into contact with the flowing golden flames around her, faint red fire ignited along her sides, making viewers ache with sympathy.
What did the appearance of this kind of animated CG illustration mean in a world where the animation industry was still underdeveloped?
Much like how 'RWBY' had stirred waves within the animation industry, it was a rare new creation. At the very least, it possessed tremendous eye-catching appeal.
A moving illustration that combined CG effects with hand-drawn art—outside of professional companies, ordinary illustrators in Kamiyā Yuu's previous world simply could not produce such a thing. It required strict standards for both drawing skill and computer visual-effects processing.
Could that animated CG even be considered an illustration?
In this world, yes.
Because no similar examples had ever appeared before, it was difficult to clearly define what category this animated CG illustration belonged to.
Furthermore, among the upload options on the website, there were already various GIF-format options available, so moving images were officially recognized by "Fakebook" as illustrations.
The appearance of 'Ashen Paradise' could be described as killing two birds with one stone. It could both serve as the illustration Kamiyā Yuu needed to fulfill his promise with Uehara Etsuki and function as an extremely successful and innovative trailer.
The popularity wave of 'Red—Crescent Rose' had not yet fully faded away, so how could fans of 'Red—Crescent Rose' not become excited and delighted by this newly announced information?
During this period, Kamiyā Yuu rarely logged into his Yosuganosora account on "Fakebook." However, as the sole official account for 'Red—Crescent Rose,' it still needed management, so Kamiyā Sora had been handling it in his place.
She could be considered a special, unofficial member of 'Yosuganosora' Animation Studio. Her understanding of the works Kamiyā Yuu wanted to create was no less than that of Yūki Chinatsu, one of the studio's core animation creators.
Moreover, after being constantly influenced by Kamiyā Yuu during this period, she would study animation production whenever she had free time. Anything Kamiyā Yuu liked, she was willing to accept as well.
Leaving aside her actual animation production ability, Kamiyā Sora was already doing an exceptionally outstanding job managing the account itself.
When interacting with fans, she remained calm and patient, answering questions while occasionally leaking bits of information to stir curiosity.
When negotiating cooperation terms with the official staff of "Fakebook," she maintained excellent balance and composure, rejecting the excessive demands proposed by the platform while simultaneously presenting mutually beneficial alternatives.
As for the olive branches extended by other major companies, she did not reject them immediately. Instead, she leveraged them as bargaining chips during negotiations with "Fakebook."
After more than a month, the Yosuganosora account on "Fakebook" had surpassed two million followers, entering the ranks of the platform's top-tier well-known accounts, standing shoulder to shoulder with the official accounts of major animation companies.
The moment the CG animated illustration for 'Ashen Paradise' was released, the account's follower growth curve surged upward once again within a short period.
Many people began speculating about Kamiyā Yuu's intentions behind this announcement.
What exactly was the Christmas gift scheduled for December 25th?
An illustration?
That hardly counted as a Christmas-gift-level surprise.
A sequel?
Was this an animation studio or a breeding sow?
Even pigs weren't this productive!
Although 'Red—Crescent Rose' was merely a ten-minute 3D short animation, its quality and level of dedication were so high that even America's top animation studios might not be capable of producing something equivalent.
The general public believed that for a studio of modest scale, producing such a short animation would require at least a year of preparation.
And now, less than two months after the release of 'Red—Crescent Rose,' another work of the same level was supposedly coming out?
Anyone with even a little common sense would not think that was possible.
Regarding the information Kamiyā Yuu had released, the current mainstream theory online was that it would be similar in nature to the PV released before 'Red—Crescent Rose'—an edited promotional video.
Even that possibility alone was enough to excite the fans of 'Red—Crescent Rose.'
According to the information leaked by Yosuganosora, 'Red—Crescent Rose' was merely one of the four character promotional animations for 'RWBY.'
Based on the name 'RWBY,' many fans had already guessed that the four characters corresponded to Red, Yellow, Black, and White.
To a certain extent, the appearance of the 'Ashen Paradise' illustration also confirmed this theory.
At the same time, many fans worried that this wave of publicity might ultimately become nothing more than an illusion.
Throughout history, there had been plenty of works that exploded with praise immediately upon release, yet very few managed to maintain that quality over time.
The style of 'Red—Crescent Rose' was too unique, and its quality too exceptional, causing animation-savvy fans to worry whether such standards could realistically be maintained.
Some people posting online no longer hoped the sequel would amaze them again—they merely prayed that the quality would not noticeably decline.
However, during this period, while 'Red—Crescent Rose' gained tremendous praise, it also inevitably attracted a wave of haters.
These days, there are plenty of examples of works getting hated simply because they were too successful.
The reasons for hating something varied wildly.
Some people hated popular works to demonstrate their supposedly refined tastes and distinguish themselves from the "vulgar masses."
Others hated works they personally considered garbage because those works were more popular than the series they liked.
Some were simply clowns seeking attention through noise.
Others lashed out because their own works were poor and rejected by mainstream audiences.
Examples from Kamiyā Yuu's previous world included 'Sword Art Online,' 'Attack on Titan,' 'Tokyo Ghoul,' and so on.
These works might not necessarily have been masterpieces, but in terms of appealing to the mass market, they were undoubtedly enormous successes.
The fears fans had regarding a strong beginning followed by weak later developments were not without precedent either.
Back when 'Kabaneri of the Iron Fortress' first aired, it had received overwhelming praise. Its unique world setting and detailed artwork caused many to proclaim it the next 'Attack on Titan,' even giving rise to claims that its BD sales would reach eighty-eight thousand copies.
However, the anime's director was the infamous Ōkouchi.
In the end, exactly what fans feared still happened.
The latter story spiraled out of control, forcing edgy developments and artificially lowering characters' intelligence, causing many fans to abandon the series while cursing the director to forever eat instant noodles without seasoning packets.
There was virtually nothing in the quality of 'Red—Crescent Rose' itself that could be attacked.
But if people could not criticize the work, that did not mean they could not criticize Yosuganosora, the one who released it.
Who exactly was Yosuganosora?
Before 'Red—Crescent Rose,' nobody knew.
Even after its release, no official information had been disclosed. The music funding for 'Red—Crescent Rose' itself even had to rely on crowdfunding.
Could such a mysterious, no-name black workshop really continue maintaining the quality of this work?