Chapter 707

Miyawaki Sakura, with her beautiful, sweet face and light makeup, never imagined she would one day learn such a dark secret from Uesugi Muneyuki's mouth!

She understood completely!

Why simultaneously guide Kawabe Mayu and Nishino Miki? Because someone needed to file a report and seek help!

Why harm Kawabe Mayu? Because Kawabe Mayu was about to graduate! And she had always wanted to retire, so doing this would maximize her final value!

Why cause trouble now? Because this place is just far enough from Tokyo that the content can be explosive yet remote enough from crowds to allow relative control and safety! Plus, it helps clear suspicion!

Moreover, she secretly harbored a terrifying thought.

Seeing Uesugi Muneyuki, Shirakawa Mai, and Saito Asuka all looking at her, she spoke softly: "Um, you guys should know, right?" "What?" Uesugi Muneyuki shook his head: "If you don't tell us, how would we know?"

"Well, that... the general election, the general election—Sashihara Rino has already won three in a row, and this year she doesn't plan to run, and if Mayu Watanabe graduates, then this year's general election will lose all its highlights, and I and Jurina-san... can't carry an entire general election on our own." Miyawaki Sakura said somewhat embarrassedly and awkwardly: "In that case, this year's general election would... but if such a big incident occurs, this year's general election will gain many more highlights, and it will also ignite fans' frenzy—just see whether I or Jurina can hold it together."

"So, if it's really as you said, Uesugi... indeed... it seems to be the case." Sakura said cautiously: "If explained this way, it makes sense—so-called Mayu Watanabe has already reached the execution line!"

Uesugi Muneyuki nodded.

Understood, now everything is clear!!

As mentioned earlier, the general election is Akimoto Yasushi's attempt to ascend to become a New God; to some extent, fervent fans charting, fundraising, active fan circles, cheering, and various idol activities are basically indistinguishable from religious activities—all are ways of gathering countless faiths to assault the New God. But judging from Akimoto Yasushi's current performance, he clearly has not yet become a New God.

Meanwhile, a major problem arises: after the Akiba-style idol craze lasted about ten years, Japanese people began to grow tired of and indifferent to the endless stream of girl idols, and the general election has shifted from pure fan devotion to a vote-buying and charting game; fans no longer compete in true love, but in manpower, material resources, financial power, and who knows how to play the victim.

Worse still, Sashihara Rino's sudden rise made the general election utterly predictable; as a female idol, she took the path of a comedian, and after blowing up, she gained massive fans aged 35–60—these old fogies are the true societal backbone; in a vote, how could teenage or twenty-something idol otakus possibly beat this group as the real main force?

This has caused the general election, originally the annual peak feast, to lose its highlights and freshness; after Sashihara's three-peat, fan enthusiasm has actually declined.

Thus, a harmful incident like Kawae Sae's is needed, so Mayu Watanabe must sacrifice herself, get injured, and ignite the topic—using her flesh and blood as bait to light Akiba's Golden Throne!

I just didn't expect a small hiccup midway!

"So, is Akimoto Yasushi treating this general election as the final one to hold?" Mai Xuejie was the first to understand.

"Pretty much that, I guess—put bluntly, us latecomers, whether in fan popularity or image accumulation, simply can't compare to our seniors." Xiao Ying said with a bitter smile: "Each general election is a deep release of fan potential; after each fundraising and voting ends, large numbers of fans drop out—this isn't a game that can be played forever."

"No wonder the latest Akai Saka 46 doesn't hold general elections—looks like Akimoto Yasushi wants to operate this long-term." Asuka said, pouting: "Treating each term as the last, then not fearing loss!" Mai Xuejie giggled: "Come on, Sakura!" "Mai-sama! Stop teasing me! With this incident, whether this year's general election happens or not is still a question, and now things have turned out this way—so awful, it's hard to say what the group will become!" Xiao Ying said, still bitterly smiling.

Oh no, I won't really have to go work at the National Police Agency, as a non-career Miyazaki Patrol Officer in the Security Planning Division of the Security Bureau of the National Police Agency? This kind of thing, I don't want it!

And Uesugi Muneyuki nodded meaningfully.

Human nature is to love the new and tire of the old, and most loves to try and touch all forbidden domains.

As the saying goes: all things are empty, all matters are permitted.

Thus, humans need ever greater and stronger stimulation.

Take the famous《Lin Hai Snowy Plains》: the original of Taking Tiger Mountain by Strategy was essentially Yang Zirong leading a squad of six soldiers, who, through concealment, crossing mountains and ridges, pretending to be bearded bandits (i. e., bandits), successfully captured the bandits led by Zhang Leshan (i. e., Seat Mountain Eagle), twenty-five in total. This was naturally a great merit, and Yang Zirong thus received Third-class Merit, but seeing the scale, one knows this was merely a tiny encounter—no firefight even occurred, Zhang Leshan's bandits surrendered at once, and Zhang Leshan himself was a seventy-year-old elder, whose greatest strength was mountain climbing and familiarity with mine tunnels—he could hide, but not fight.

But what feeling does this story give people when taken out?

Not thrilling enough.

Thus came the first revision: in《Lin Hai Snowy Plains》, Yang Zirong was strengthened, given a platoon of elite troops plus some militia, and Seat Mountain Eagle was enhanced to command over two hundred bandits and machine guns, with a mountain stronghold.

This is actually already unreasonable—over two hundred bandits would require mobilizing regular troops, and fighting bandits is hard, hard because the enemy runs everywhere and digs everywhere; if there were a fixed stronghold, difficulty would be very low, and regular troops could just push straight through and be done.

But considering artistic license, everyone just accepted it.

Yet after a long time, everyone again felt not thrilling enough.

Thus, the latest《Taking Tiger Mountain by Strategy》: Seat Mountain Eagle not only has a fortress cluster on the mountain, commanding over a thousand bandits, but also equipped with aircraft, tanks, and mountain cannons!

This is simply preposterous—Zhang Lingfu's 74th Reorganized Division never simultaneously had aircraft, tanks, and heavy artillery!

If the scale were larger, Zhang Leshan could be renamed Zhang Xueliang or even Zhang Zuolin!

And what do over a thousand people on the mountain eat every day? Liangshan Marsh became like this because after Lin Chong and others went up the mountain, they had to go out looting and pillaging. By this point, it's already getting absurd.

Another example: in numerous Japanese special effects dramas, enemies are destroyed by the ton—"colonels" even "major generals"—but in actual rear battlefield combat, don't even mention a "colonel"; destroying a "captain" is already a notable military feat; someone might say "Flower of Famous Generals" Abe Regeliu, but he was "executed," not "resisted"; truly falling in rear combat "resistance" like Gang Xiaoxian, deputy colonel in the Guan Jiaonu Battle, who died and was posthumously promoted to colonel—this is the highest-ranking officer destroyed in rear combat resistance.

But if filming continues this way, "major general," "lieutenant general" will soon bore everyone—sooner or later, Prince Hirohiko of Fushimi-no-miya or even Emperor Hirohito will personally lead campaigns in North China. And this is precisely what is meant by "Color Lust Corrosion."

Ever more perverse, ever more stimulating, ever more madly seeking even a hint of stimulation, until finally plunging into eternal emptiness and boredom, ultimately offering loyalty to Prince Saha!

By the way, artistic creation is enjoyable, but know that this is like "Hong Xuanye" and "Chen Hongli"—not real! Don't take such false things as real history!

Akimoto Yasushi seems to understand this; he himself knows the general election is now a spent force, so he plans to make one final big move.

The so-called Kawabe Mayu harm case will, in the end, once and for all, by "executing" Mayu Watanabe, offer Akimoto Yasushi a hymn to the path to becoming a New God!

This is also why Xiao Ying felt chills all over.

Perhaps for Akiba, she herself is also part of it.

Must escape! Must get out!

Here, perhaps I can no longer stay!

"Since it's like this, then everything is clear now." Mai Xuejie also fully understood: "Then we can return to Tokyo." "Yeah, right—what about Date? I feel like I haven't seen him? Where did this guy go?" Uesugi Muneyuki asked.

"He? He seems to have gone with the Second Young Lady of Akai Saka 46, Moriya Akane, to eat; I heard there are delicious Frost Sugar Apples nearby, and Miss Moriya invited him to join her." Mai Xuejie said.

"Alright."